


Aftermath

by smockrock



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Body Horror, Found Family, Gen, Mental Coercion, POV Second Person, Post-Pacifist Route, Reader Is Frisk, Unreliable Narrator, slight AU elements, small tufts of fluff, these tags sure aren't gettin' any cheerier are they
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-02
Updated: 2016-09-05
Packaged: 2018-06-06 00:34:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 38
Words: 28,469
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6730105
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/smockrock/pseuds/smockrock
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"“Love never dies a natural death. It dies because we don't know how to replenish its source. It dies of blindness and errors and betrayals. It dies of illness and wounds; it dies of weariness, of witherings, of tarnishings.” - Anaïs Nin</p><p>They never gave up, because you never did.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

In the beginning, there was nothing.

There was nothing for a long, long time. You just existed, there in a great yawning void. Time had no meaning. Nothing had any meaning. There was nothing there.

Brief snippets of someone's life started to play every so often. A snowball fight here, what looked like a family dinner in another. Was the person smiling in the middle you? Were you even a person? You didn't know.

Eventually the snippets had sound. It was garbled and full of static, but you could make out voices sometimes. You didn't feel like you knew them. One was warm, sounding like honey and butterscotch. Another was low, almost grating, and sounded like a cold night. You didn't know how you knew how these things felt or sounded. There were many voices and many memories, but not a single one sparked any real recognition.

The low voice kept coming back, outside of the memories. Several others did too, but the low one was the first and most frequent. Had you been capable, you would have tried to figure out what it was saying. As it was, you just let the sights and sounds wash over you.

This ended one day in a blaze of searing light, making you cry out. You hadn't even known you could make a sound, much less the anguished scream coming out of you now. With the light came a fierce pain, ripping through the entirety of your being. After being unable to feel for such a long while, suddenly all you could do was feel. It hurt.

It hurt for a long, long time, but not quite as long as the nothing. You had stopped screaming after a while, your voice hoarse and throat burning like the rest of you. Someone gave you a cool liquid, but you didn't know how to drink it, sending it everywhere. Something sparked around you and it was hurredly taken away.

Eventually the pain died down, though how long it had taken to get to that point was anyones guess. You still hurt, oh god did you hurt, but you could finally try to focus on other things. The lights had been dimmed, though they still burned your eyes some. Your vision was still blurry, but you could make out stark walls, and machines. A fuzzy shape stood to the side of you, and for the first time since you could remember you tried to speak.

It went about as well as the liquid, and all that came out was a long, raspy groan. The fuzzy shape seemed startled, and came closer. "Y-you're awake! You're a-a-awake. Oh god. Oh g-good. O-okay. H-hold on a second for m-me, alright?" it squeaked. Your confusion must've been evident on your face, because the shape squeaked again. "Oh, o-oh I k-knew this would h-happen w-while he was g-gone." It took off, leaving you alone with your thoughts. Not that you could think all that much right now. With another groan you closed your eyes, trying to block out that damned light.

The shape didn't take off too far though, and you could still hear it shuffling around. "S-sans?" you heard, the shape pacing back and forth. "Y-you're gonna w-want to c-come back. Frisk i-is awake."


	2. Chapter 2

Some time had passed since the...whatever it was spoke to someone. You couldn't tell how much, as you were too busy trying not to scream your throat raw. The pain just kept coming back, waves and waves of it washing cruelly over you. This was worse than the nothing, and it truly felt more endless.

"Stabilize...hook them up to...try the..." Voices floated in and out of your awareness. One of them was the low voice you heard before, mingled with squeaks and quick talking from whoever approached you earlier. Sometimes you caught the hum of the machines you saw earlier, but mostly you just lay there in agony.

This went on for a while. One day (or night, or who knew?), you heard three voices. The third was the butterscotch voice, the one you'd heard in the nothing. You hadn't heard it in so long, and purely out of some instinct you reached out towards it.

...but nobody came.

Time passed. Someone muttered quietly over you eventually, sounding strained. A warm feeling washed over you, and for the first time in ages you didn't feel like you were being torn apart. You tried to thank whoever it was, but no sound came out. They were gone, anyway.

Drifting off without warning became somewhat common. Sometimes you'd wake up to voices, and sometimes you'd wake up only to hear the soft hums of the machines. Every so often you heard yourself screaming, but it happened less and less often. The pain ebbed slightly. Things were still a blur, but it wasn't endless misery anymore.

The low voice tried to talk to you a couple times, you think. You hadn't been able to follow a conversation for much longer than what the shape had said before, but it talked to you about birds singing, and the sun shining. Their voice cracked every so often. It pained you in a way you didn't fully understand.

 

* * *

 

  
Alphys set down a mug of tea on the table and nudged it towards a very haggard looking Sans. He wore a wrinkled, dirty lab coat over a stained t-shirt, and he had smudges all over his skull. Some were in the shape of handprints, looking as if Papyrus had gotten a little too into a hug or two. Dark circles ringed his eyes, and he shook slightly. Sans was, simply put, a mess. Alphys was too, but she at least had on a clean shirt today.

"D-drink this and go rest for a bit, Sans," She said, not unkindly. "They're asleep r-right now, and the m-machines don't indicate them w-waking up anytime soon." Alphys pulled up a chair and waited for him to say something, while she kept an eye out on the monitors.

He didn't say anything. She knew he felt guilty about not being there when you first woke up, but he wasn't at fault. Neither of them had known how long it would take you to awaken, if ever, and that was if this plan even worked. It was such a risky procedure, and there were so many variables that it made even Alphys' head spin.

"D-do you want s-something else? O-or I c-can call your brother?" Still nothing. He was gone to the world and lost in his own. That was never a good sign, so Alphys steeled herself to fill the uncomfortable silence with anything she could think of.

"U-uhm, so, Undyne and Papyrus a-are gathering up clothing for when Frisk c-can move around more."

Nothing.

"A-and uh, Toriel called, s-she's going to go get Asgore's h-help for the h-healing spells and s-stuff. H-he might have some useful f-flowers or herbs that w-we don't, s-since it's difficult to stop their p-pain with just magic."

Still nothing. Steam rose in curls from the tea in front of Sans.

Something inside of Alphys snapped, just a little. "L-look, Sans," she snapped, finally getting his wary attention. She was a little spooked by the lack of light in his eyes, but kept going. "I g-get that you're p-pretty broken-up-about-this-but-I'm-hurting-too-do-you-think-I-can-handle-this-work-alone-I-haven't-slept-in-ages-and-they-look-so-pained-and...a-and. Uh."

Sans didn't react, but didn't look away either. "I just need you to t-throw me a bone here," she finished lamely, rubbing one arm. There was a beat, and then Alphys squeaked out a frantic, "OH-M-MY-GOD-I'M-SO-SO-SORRY-I-DIDN'T-REALIZE-I WAS - "

"calm down." Was that a twitch of a smile? Something flashed across his face, but it was gone soon enough. The light came back into his eyes, very slightly. "it's okay."

He didn't say anything else, but Sans did pick up the tea and began to slowly drink it. Inwardly, Alphys breathed a sigh of relief. She was already busy trying to keep you from falling apart, and herself from breaking down. She couldn't add one more to the pile. 


	3. Chapter 3

Toriel clutched the small pouch of herbs close to her chest, and tried not to let her worries get the best of her. Alphys and Sans were some of the brightest of their generation - probably the very brightest, and they had this handled. It had taken some nudging to get Sans back into the lab back when they'd first reached the surface, but it was truly worth it for so many different reasons.

Her child was safe. Her child was here. She wouldn't lose another.

At the moment, she sat in rather large van next to Asgore, traveling to Alphys' lab. Things weren't near as chilly between them as the were at first. Over the years, they'd become cordial with each other. Nobody would call them friends, but nobody would call them enemies, either. Asgore was wisely quiet, and focused on getting them there as fast as the local laws would allow. 

In the back Undyne was sprawled over Papyrus, who was taking it in stride. He looked out the window, watching the scenery whiz by, while Undyne toyed around on her phone. To an outside observer, they both looked relaxed given the situation. Toriel could tell by his slightly furrowed brow and her drooped fins that they were the farthest from it.

You were awake, but hadn't improved all that much yet. Alphys had explained that the stress of the procedure had put more wear on you than expected, and you were too drained still to recover more than a little. Hopefully the plants they brought along would help that, and soothe your cries. 

"Tori," Asgore said softly after an hour or so had passed. "Have you given thought on how to explain this to Frisk?"

"I will give that thought when they are fully awake," she said coldly, but her heart wasn't in it. She stared out the window into the night for a bit, then sighed. "I don't even know where to start."

"You did what you had to, Tori." Asgore kept looking ahead. "We all did."

There wasn't another word spoken for the rest of the trip.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a bit of a short chapter today, sorry about that. Thanks for the kudos and everything so far, guys! This won't always update daily, by the way - I've just been hit with a burst of creativity. :)


	4. Chapter 4

_The deed was done._

_There was no backing out of this now, they'd gone too far. All of them were tense, none of them daring to relax for a moment. The air was thick with magical energy, almost stiflingly so. You lay limp on the gourney, arm hanging listlessly by your side. You weren't breathing._

_"L-levels are a-almost there..." Alphys muttered. "Is e-everyone ready?"_

 

* * *

  
"It might take months? Months?!"

A voice not unlike the butterscotch voice rang through your head, bringing you groggily back into awareness. Your skin felt cool and tingled slightly, and your pain was only minimal. This was the most relief you could ever remember feeling.

"tori, please, calm down. the kid's been through a lot, they'll get it eventually. it'll just, y'know, take a while."

Tori? Something close to recognition sparked at the edges of your memory. That name sounded fairly familiar.

"How long is a while? How long until my child is up and walking around again?"

"i don't. know." There was silence. "we haven't exactly done this before."

Tori. Toriel? You felt your hands move. You did something with them - it felt like second nature, but you were still too out of it to grasp what you were doing. Whatever you were lying on rustled with your movements, catching their eye.

"My child! Are you with us?" The voice loomed over you...but it was warm, and felt like home. It took an enormous amount of effort, but you tried to open your eyes. Everything was still so blurry, but they were close enough to you that you could see them almost clearly.

You did the thing with your hands again, slowly. _...mom?_  
  
She nodded and her eyes misted over, and suddenly you found yourself in a very gentle, warm embrace. It hurt, but you didn't really mind. Memories were slowly but surely making their way back to you, even if it was only a little at a time. 

"kid, how're you feeling?" Now the low voice stood next to Toriel, and you could barely make out the shape of bones.  
  
Your hands moved again, but you were getting slightly more confident. You were signing, you remembered, though your hands felt...different. You still couldn't really remember much but you were sure your hands were much smoother. Much warmer, too, now that you thought about it. _Sans,_ you signed once Toriel finally let you go, _What happened?_

The look that flashed across his face was pained, but he'd slapped on his usual lazy grin almost immediately. "first things first, buddy, then we get to the good stuff. you feelin' okay, good, dunked on, what?"

Toriel shot him a look. "Dunked on?"

"don't worry about it."

 _Hurts,_ you signed, wincing as you did so. _Inside and out_. You tried to go into more detail, but you could already feel yourself fading again. Your vision started to grey out, and you felt yourself being gently covered in a warm blanket. Idly, you wondered when you'd be able to have a full conversation again.

"we'll talk later. get some rest, kiddo, you've still got a lot of healing to do." Sans watched as you fell back into unconsciousness, and reached for Toriel's hand. She grasped it firmly, and they both stood there for while, just happy you were alive.

"Did we do the right thing?" Toriel's voice was soft and wavering. Sans had asked himself that question over and over, and he still didn't really know the answer. Instead of answering, he gently led her out of the room, back to where the others were waiting. There'd be time to sort out guilt later. 

 

* * *

   
You dreamt.

You were surrounded by howling winds, filled with a fine dust that made you choke and sputter. It stung your eyes every time you tried to get a grasp on your surroundings. You heard laughing in the distance, and a cheery voice rang out above the wind.

"Howdy, Frisk! Boy, you sure look different, huh?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, Frisk isn't in agony anymore! :D I'm not 100% on this chapter so it might get revised a bit later, but for now it's good. Thanks for the comments & kudos, guys! I'm stunned anyone is reading this thing in the first place.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content Warning: This is where the body horror tag comes into play, about halfway down the page (after the line break.)

Your family was crowded into the lab's small breakroom, on what odd bits of furniture they could find. The skeleton brothers were seated on an old, old couch that leaned up against the wall, and Papyrus was doing his best impression of an angry glare down at his brother. "SANS."

"yeah, bro?"

"WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU SHOWERED? AND WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR HEAD?" Papryus sniffed the air and glared again at Sans, who was managing to sweat a little. It didn't help the smudges any.

"bro, we uh, don't exactly have tons of free time." Sans pointed at Alphys. "why aren't you askin' her when she showered?" Alphys made a choked noise and starting stuttering about being thrown under the bus.

"YES, BUT YOU STILL NEED TO TAKE CARE OF BASIC HYGIENE," Papyrus huffed. "YOU HAVEN'T BEEN HOME IN WEEKS! HAVE YOU EVEN SMOOCHED TORIEL LATELY?" The goat monster in question blushed hard enough to light her fur up. The rest tried their best not to snicker, but it was a losing battle. After muttering something about personal business, Sans tried to sink further into the beat-up couch. It didn't work.

"Bonehead's got a point, you're both spending too much time here." Undyne was snuggled up next to Alphys, and they were holding each other like they hadn't had the chance to in weeks. Now that Sans thought about it, they really hadn't. "Can't you guys do shifts or something?"

"W-we uh. They're not quite r-ready for us both to be g-gone," Alphys piped up, glancing guiltily at Toriel. To her credit, Toriel pretended not to notice. "Frisk's body is s-still trying to figure out h-how to regulate everything."

"yeah, and while they're workin' through that, they've destroyed a good third of our equipment," Sans sighed. "we can't switch off until we know they won't wreck the place."

"What about assistance?" Asgore asked. "I can ask around, I do still have connections."

"you really think we can bring someone else in on this? 'sides, nobody but me and alphys even know how to read the schematics. It's a - " Sans faltered. He had to be really, really careful on how he phrased the next part.

"I-it's old magical coding. R-really, uh, c-complicated. They d-don't teach it anymore." Alphys awkwardly swooped in for the save. That seemed to be a good enough answer for the Asgore, and the others. It wasn't a total lie, anyway.

Idle chatter filled the room, and Sans let himself drift off. The others could wake him up if something happened.

 

* * *

 

While your family chatted and tried to relax a little together, you were having one hell of a bad time.

Your skin felt like it was cracking, in little spidery fractures all over. The wind bit at your skin, and blood was pooling at your feet. You couldn't move. Where the hell was that voice coming from?

"Oh, are you uncomfortable?" There it came again, dripping with venom and false concern. "Poor Frisk, can't even handle a little dust storm."

You had a pounding headache. It grew and grew and grew, feeling as if your skull was about to burst apart. This wasn't real, right? As you desperately hoped it wasn't, vines erupted from the ground, winding tightly around your legs. Thorns bit into your skin, rending the flesh where they found it. You toppled over, hitting the ground with a large thump and more than a few sickly cracks.

"The last time I saw that face, I was killing you!" Peals of laughter followed, and you thought you might know what face he was making. "Boy, you look like you feel awful."

That was an understatement. More vines wound their way around your body, leaving bloody trails in their wake. Your head felt like it was about to burst open. Opening your eyes wasn't even an option anymore - the wind just kept picking up, the dust like a fine sandpaper grit over your skin. 

"But hey! You don't have to worry about all that anymore, do you?"

The vines constricted, and then tore apart, taking most of you with it. Flowey simply listened to your screams for a while, before letting out a hysterical giggle. "You don't even know, do you? Wow, you really are an idiot."

You barely heard him. On some level, you knew this was a dream. You knew you weren't watching your skin be peeled back by dark, blood-stained vines. You weren't laying there on whatever the floor was, as the wind sanded you away. You didn't feel your skull cracking in one wide, clean line down the center of your face, and you definitely didn't feel the thorns taking care of the rest. 

This is all you could keep telling yourself, as the torture went on. It was all you could think. This isn't real, you're not actually being ripped apart, you're not really here, Flowey isn't really here -

Every part of you, every bit of you was torn away. It lay in pieces around you. The wind never stopped howling. Flowey never stopped laughing. You lay there, frantically chanting your mantra to yourself, desperately hoping to wake up at any point soon.

Then, without warning, the wind died. The dust fell to the ground, giving it and you a soft coating. You weren't dying. Your skin and innards did not come back to you, but you weren't dying.

Needless to say, you were confused, but your train of thought was interrupted by that damned flower again.

"Don't worry, Frisk, I'm not gonna kill you. What fun would that be?" The flower burst from the ground, and gave you a wink. "I can't wait to see what you do. Have fun!"

Have fun?

There was a bright flash of blinding yellow light, and you raised your hand in a desperate attempt to shield it. You were thrust back into the waking world, into a world of chaos. There was crackling red energy all around you, and several of the machines were sparking and smoking. Alphys and Sans were running around in a desperate attempt to save at least some of the equipment. The others crowded at the entrance, shouting something.

You didn't notice. You were too busy staring at your hand. Your vision had managed to clear somewhat, and it was in front of you in full detail. It was the same hand you'd always had, with the same structure and size.

Now though, it was just smooth white bone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It won't always be this sad/kinda gross, I promise! You know what they say, it's gotta get worse before it gets better. And then worse again. And then maybe better.


	6. Chapter 6

_"T-this is going to t-take most of your reserves - most of all our r-reserves." Alphys gulped. "It t-takes a lot of m-magic to get this going."_

_Hanging from the ceiling above your limp form was a large machine, smooth and bulbous with a container of sorts towards the bottom. There was a lightning rod of a sort attached at an angle on one side, and on the bottom was a large cone, with rings around it. For the moment, it was silent and dark._

_"so we're gonna count down from three," Sans said firmly, "and we're gonna need all of you to focus. no freakin' out."_

_None of them, not even Sans, could really promise that. They were determined, but most of all, they were scared. They didn't want to lose you._

 

* * *

   
"NGAHH!" A screech jolted you out of your reverie, just in time to see Undyne get hit with a red bolt of energy in the arm. You could see a bony hand reach out and drag her out of harms way, and your heart hurt. As if sensing it, the energy whipped up into even more of a frenzy, sending equipment and papers flying.

"My child!" Toriel darted into the room, dodging the energy as best she could until she stood at your side. A warm, furry paw cradled your head (skull?) as she looked down at you with warmth and worry. "I know this is all so confusing, but please, you need to calm down."

Startled, you gazed up at her, your eyes wide with fear. _Is that,_ you signed shakily. _Is that coming from me?_

"That is your magic, and magic is influenced by emotion," she said softly. Toriel paused for a moment, before continuing. "Especially for...monsters."

The energy - no, the magic thrummed as you started to panic even more, and you expected your heart to start racing. It didn't. Instead, the magic simply started sparking more, forcing Sans to drag Alphys out of the room for both of their sakes. You were human! You were human, you were sure of it.

You felt a pressure, and noticed Toriel had leaned in to envelope you in a hug. "We will explain everything to you, we promise. I know this is frightening, but you are safe."

It didn't look safe, but as Toriel held you, you began to calm down somewhat. The magic started to fade, the sparks twinkling out of existance. Soon enough, all that remained was the smoke of the machines and the sound of alarms going off. The others slowly made their way back to your room, cautious but worried.

Toriel slowly let you go, but stayed by your side, a warm anchor in the tempest of your emotions. Undyne re-appeared with a bandage around her arm and a spark in her eye. You were relieved that she didn't seem to be doing badly - if anything, she had more energy that the rest of you put together.

"That was badass, punk! It might even leave a scar!" Her eyes glinted. "First thing we're doing once you get better is training." Behind her, Alphys gave you a shaky little wave and asked how you were feeling.

 _Confused,_ you answered honestly. Papyrus started bouncing in the back and waved at you. You waved back, wincing a little from the pain, and the grin you received made you calm down even more. Asgore kept him from bounding to you and sweeping you into a bone-crushing hug, which you were grateful for.

"well, kid, you really weren't supposed to find out like this." Sans stood in the center of the room, surveying the damage. "no time like the present though, i guess."

He faced the others. "well guys, pull up a chair. frisk, you feelin' up to a chat?" Sans turned to you with that same old lazy grin on his face, covered in smudges and what looked like burnt oil. You signed yes, though you weren't really sure. With your family around you again, though, you didn't feel quite so lost and out of it.

"cool. we've got a lot to cover here, so let us know if you need to rest, alright? especially after today." You nodded, and the others left to go fetch furniture. "oh, and kid?"

_Yeah?_

A genuine smile, though small, lit up his face this time. "welcome back."


	7. Chapter 7

"Frisk, what is the last thing you remember?" Toriel asked gently. Your family was seated around you in a semi-circle, looking about as beat up as you felt. You'd apologized several times, and several times you'd firmly been told that it wasn't your fault.

_I don't remember all that much, besides who you all are,_ you answered slowly. _I didn't remember even that much for a long time._

The room was quiet, and if you could fidget without pain, you would have. Everyone immediately looked tense and uncomfortable, and nobody would meet your eye. Finally, you coughed to grab their attention, and asked again what happened to you.

"so you don't remember what happened." it wasn't a question, really. Sans eyes were dim. "that's probably for the best."

"You died." Undyne blurted out. Heads whipped her way and she threw up her hands in defense. "Look, we can't dance around this forever, Frisk already knows they're a monster. You don't just suddenly become a skeleton."

"Perhaps we could have broken it to them a bit more gently, Undyne?" Toriel's face was neutral, but her tone was icy. Undyne got the hint and shut up.

_Wait,_ you signed. _I'm really a monster now? How?_

"buddy, you wouldn't exactly be up and walking around if you weren't." He didn't answer your other question, nor did any of the others. You grew uncomfortable, and silently wished someone would just break the ice already and tell you what happened.

"You got some kind of human disease." Undyne said finally. The others made as if to scold her, but held back. She was the only one really brave enough to tell you. "You got sick, real sick. They caught it too late to really do anything."

Toriel looked at you kindly. "We don't know exactly what you had, my child. But..." she sighed. "What Undyne says is true. You were terribly ill."

_Then how...?_ You signed, getting frustrated.

"What do you remember about souls, Frisk?" Asgore asked, his tone carefully light.

The air around you started to hum ever so lightly, startling the others. Nevertheless, you answered. _It's the culmination of your entire being, your hopes, dreams, everything._ For all intents and purposes, it was you.

"Y-yes, well." Alphys piped up. "Your s-soul was b-bursting with determination when we, uh, found y-you. And we ah..."

"WE USED IT TO BRING YOU BACK! AREN'T YOU EXCITED?" Papyrus cheered, an eager look on his face.

_There's something you all aren't telling me._ You said slowly. Your mind was foggy but you weren't dull. _How did you do this to me?_

"kid, don't you think that could be answered later?" You hadn't realized, but the room was beginning to hum even louder as your emotions swirled. Sans tried to grin, but his eyes were so dim it was unconvincing. The lights in the room seemed to dim along with him.

_How did you find me? I thought I was sick? Wasn't I in a hospital?_

"They, uh." Alphys pushed up her glasses. "T-they sent you h-home for c-care. There w-wasn't anything else they c-could do."

They were hiding something. Maybe they thought you were too out of it still to notice, but you caught the furtive glances and uncomfortable fidgets every time a word was spoken. The tempest in you howled, begging to be set loose. You were so lost, so confused. You were hurt, too - why was your family hiding things from you?

_So let me get this straight._ You began. _I got sick, and died, and you somehow turned me into a monster. But you won't tell me how, and I'm just expected to sit here and accept that?_

The air thrummed again. Alphys squeaked and hid behind Undyne, who was giving you an odd look. "Frisk, you alright?" She asked softly. Still, she kept a protective arm around Alphys.

_Alright?_ The tempest broke loose, and all the confusion, pain, and hurt you'd felt so far bubbled to the surface. _I don't know where I am, or what happened, and I barely remember anything. I'm not even human anymore. How **alright**  do you think I am?_

If you could have shouted, screamed this all out, you would have felt better. Instead, your arms flailed wildly, doing their best to get the emotion across. Why did they just tell you? Why didn't -

"whoa, buddy. chill." You felt a great pressure, and found that you felt ten times heavier than before. Sans was sweating a little, one eye alight with pulsating blue and yellow staring down at you. You couldn't even begin to describe the look on his face. "you're actin' a lot more agitated than you usually do. we're not out to get ya."

"Perhaps we should let them rest for now, and have this chat later." Toriel said said as lightly as she could, the energy in the air making her somewhat nervous. "This is a lot to take in all at once."

The pressure on your chest didn't let up as the others murmured in agreement, taking their leave. Toriel stayed behind, giving you a warm smile and another all-encompassing hug. "Do not worry, my child," she said, before leaving as well. You could see the tears in her eyes.

Soon enough, they were all gone, save for Sans, who was still holding you down. He seemed to be measuring you up. "you gonna have any more outbursts like that?" he asked, his voice low. "is that you freakin' out like that? or **s o m e t h i n g e l s e?** "

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All the cool kids seem to have story blogs, so now I do too! It's under-aftermath on tumblr - there's not much there yet, but I'll be sticking a chapter a day up there until it's all caught up.
> 
> Thanks again for all the kudos, bookmarks, and hits! I'm a bit nervous about this chapter, but I think I did alright? The next one will answer more questions, and probably raise a couple more. :D


	8. Chapter 8

"I THINK THAT PERHAPS THAT CONVERSATION COULD HAVE GONE BETTER." Papyrus mused. Your family was back in the break room, huddled together. Most of your family, anyway - Sans was still in your room, and Toriel had silently left for bed.

Undyne snorted. "That's an understatement. I've never seen them so riled up."  
  
"W-we really should d-decide how to t-tell them before we t-try again." Alphys sighed out. "F-frisk could tell we l-left out details, I t-think."

"Right, let's just tell the kid all about the deals we made, I'm sure they'll be thrilled." That came out a little harsher than Undyne intended, and after seeing her wife's face crumple she sighed and held her closer. "Sorry babe, I just don't know how to break it to them."

"I would hope that they would understand, given their past." Asgore's voice was soft, and he seemed lost in thought. "They do know the basics of how they came to be this way, at least."

"DO YOU THINK FRISK WILL BE ANGRY?" Papyrus was worried. "ALL WE DID WAS BRING THEM BACK WITH DETERMINATION. AND MAGIC. AND SCIENCE."

"Yeah, but how are we gonna tell 'em what we had to work with wasn't enough?" Undyne didn't get an answer, nor did she particularly expect one.

 

* * *

 

Your arms were pinned to your sides with the heavy blue magic, so you gave Sans your best glare instead. He seemed to realize after a moment that he wasn't going to get any answers out of you that way, and raised his hand ever so slightly. The magic lightened, but only enough to let you move your arms, and very slowly at that.

 _What's that supposed to mean?_   You asked angrily. _Am I not allowed to be upset or something?_

"kid, there's upset, and there's being destructive." You were kept pinned to the bed, as he looked pensive. "you get why I'm worried, right?"

 _Why, are you afraid I'm going to kill you all or something?_ The question was meant to be sarcastic, but the look of shock that was on the short skeletons face made you pause. _...you don't think I'd actually do that, do you?_

"you've wrecked a good amount of stuff, you know." he gestured around you. "and you hurt Undyne. so. you tell me."

His attitude now compared to earlier chilled you to the bone. His eye never let you, and his voice stayed low, almost threatening. You remembered who he was, sure, but you didn't remember anything like this. This did nothing to help the swell of your emotions, but Sans never moved, even as the room was lit up again in red.

Neither of you said anything for a long while, but Sans face eventually softened into something close to concern. "do you really not get why...?" he asked, his voice trailing off. With tears stinging your eyes, you signed an insistent _no_ , several times over. He shook his head, and the next thing you knew you were released from the magic's hold. This startled you enough that the red magic mostly faded, though not completely. 

Sans slumped down into one of the chairs beside you, looking the worse for wear. "kid, let me tell you a story." He didn't sound threatening at all now, just tired. A little sad, too. What was going on?

 _Are you kidding me? A story?_ You looked incredulously at him. _After all that?_  
  
There that lazy grin was again, his eyes tense. "humor me, would you?" Sans closed his eyes, leaned back, and began.

"once upon a time, a child fell into the underground. they were a real firecracker, and boy, did they love to dust. so much so, they dusted everyone in sight." His tone was emotionless, almost as if he'd been through the story one too many times. You shrank back. What did this have to do with you?

One eye popped open, but you were greeted with the usual dim white pinprick instead of the glow from earlier. "their name was Frisk."


	9. Chapter 9

"one day Frisk ended up in a golden hallway, full of art and all that stuff. it was a real beautiful day, too. kid was covered in dust, and the look on their face? well, I couldn't grace it with a description."

 _You were there?_ you asked, shaking slightly. He noticed, and softened a bit.

"yeah. don't worry though, this has a happier ending. just stick with me, okay?" You nodded. "anyway, back to what I was sayin', this kid was bonkers. they had a real wild look in their eyes. they'd wiped out most of monsterkind, and I was what was left. so we fought over, and over, and over.

"but each time they died, they came right back, more prepared than ever. and each time they came back, i got more tired. it was a real mess. i'm not exactly the most energetic guy, y'know? and eventually, the kid got me. i died. poof, gone.

"and then I woke up, and i was right back where we started. everyone was fine, paps was the same as ever, and nobody remembered what happened. then you," Sans gestured your way. "stumbled out of the ruins one day, and I almost took you out then and there. but I had a promise to keep. so I watched you instead."

 _I don't really remember anything yet,_ you signed. _I didn't hurt you guys again, did I?_

"no. no, kid. you could never." You watched, more confused than ever, as he pinched where the bridge of his nose should have been. You'd have to remember to ask him about that later, when things were more...sorted.

" _tibia_ honest, kid, it's hard to explain. but that Frisk in the hallway, that wasn't you. or well, it was your body, but you weren't home. you, you now, you speak so differently and move so differently that it's two completely different people. you wouldn't hurt a fly, and you got us all out of there without hurting a soul. so when you started sparking up again and again -"

He faltered, his voice breaking, and you could see how tired he truly was. You winced from the pain, but you still managed to pull yourself up enough that you could put your hand on his. He froze.

"i'm sorry for goin' off on you kid, but I was scared we were losing you again." he finished, voice quiet.

You weren't quite sure how to react, but you kept your hand over his. He didn't move it, and you both simply sat together for a long while.

 

* * *

 

_Your body lay there, still limp, despite everything. Your family lay around you, breathing hard._

_"we used all our energy." Sans knew he was stating the obvious, but he still had to say it. "we couldn't even get it turned on."_

_"I'm ready for another round!" Undyne tried to boast and jump up, but she ended up tripping over her wife, who caught her with a squeak._

_Asgore heaved a large, heavy sigh. "We cannot push ourselves too hard, otherwise we will turn into dust ourselves." He folded his hands atop himself, feeling the weight of the world on him again. "Are there other means we can call upon?"_

_"M-maybe?" Alphys peered at the former king as best she could. "I m-mean it's got a p-pretty big risk, a-and it'd be e-extremely difficult, but I was h-hoping we wouldn't -"_

_"Alphys, please do not take this the wrong way, but we have come this far already." Toriel called out from her corner of the room, voice tired. "Just tell us what we can do."_

_"W-well, uh, um," Alphys stuttered, increasingly nervous. Undyne held her close, which only did a little to calm her nerves. It was enough, though._

_"T-there's always t-the Core."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sans finally made a pun! Also, friendly neighborhood reminder that I have a tumblr over @ under-aftermath.tumblr.com. There's not much there right now, but feel free to chat with me/ask questions, though obviously I won't give out any spoilers. :D 
> 
> The next chapter might take a bit longer to come out, as I'll be going through the previous ones to clean up any errors and/or plot hole shenanigans.


	10. Chapter 10

Time passed. Things were slightly tense, and a little strange, with your family. You still couldn't remember all that much, and they still couldn't bring themselves to tell you exactly how you became...this. Coming to terms with being a monster was going to take you a long, long while, and not having any answers didn't help. You knew they loved you, and you loved them, but you were determined to find out what happened. In the meantime, all of you tried to just focus on getting you better.

After the conversation with Sans, he'd left you alone for a while. Alphys checked in on you, made sure you were comfortable, and applied the healing herbs Asgore had provided. Toriel stopped by every so often and would sit with you for long stretches, chatting about nothing in particular. Her magic, in addition to everything else, eventually got you to the point where you could move around, at least a little.

That's where Papyrus and Undyne came in. Well, more like ran in, carrying piles of clothes for you to try on. It was a difficult process - nothing fit like it should have. You still had some sort of body, even as a skeleton - the way the cloth draped over you proved that. But it didin't feel familiar. You still didn't know how you looked at all, so you requested a mirror.

What looked back at you was shocking, to say the least. It was still you, but...not. You were still shaped like you, and looked mostly like a human skeleton...but certain bones were wider, sturdier, where you didn't think humans were. Your face wasn't stuck in a grin or anything, thank goodness, but it still felt like you shouldn't be able to smile, or frown, or cry. Yet you could. You supposed it was magic.

You were still small - from what little you could remember, you'd always been small - but seeing the inner you, so to speak, was still shocking. It wasn't the you that you remembered. A small skeleton absolutely swimming in a large t-shirt and shorts stared back at you from the mirror instead.

Eventually you healed to the point where you could shamble around the lab a little, and then a little more each day, and finally you could walk - with a cane, but you still could move around. You were light-years ahead of where you'd been when you'd been pulled screaming out of the nothing. Your magic still sparked up occasionally, but you thankfully hadn't destroyed or hurt anything else.

"Y-you might be able to go h-home soon?" Alphys said one day, more like a question than a statement. She was checking over your vitals with a small, nervous smile on her face. "I-I mean, we'll s-still need to m-monitor you, b-but t-there hasn't been an incident in ages."

Your magic sure was something. You had no real control over it yet, and you were a little nervous about learning how to do so. Undyne seemed dead set on dragging you out on the training field the moment you could walk without a cane, and you weren't sure if you were dreading it or looking forward to it. Maybe a little of both.

Still. You were determined.

"We still need to r-run some more tests with the s-stuff here," Alphys explained, "S-so it might take a while? B-but we'll get you back to T-toriels house."

You nodded, a bit too tired to really get into the conversation. At this point, you figured that your best bet to find out what happened wasn't here in this lab. Getting out of here would be the first step towards figuring out what happened to you.

 

* * *

 

You were safely strapped into Asgore's van, along with a few of the machines you'd become accustomed to and a very harried looking Alphys. Toriel was already at home getting the place ready, and while Undyne had tried to claim shotgun, Sans had waved her off and said they both needed to monitor you as you traveled. He didn't really talk to you as everyone got ready, but he wasn't avoiding you anymore, at least. You let it be for now.

It was a long trip. You slept for the most part, though, while Alphys checked and re-checked the machines to make sure the bumpy ride didn't break them apart. You didn't dream, but you did get flashes of what you thought were memories - a monster child with no arms running and laughing with you, then a puzzle involving some sort of gun, then a quiet moment with your family on what looked to be a holiday. They weren't long, or particularly fleshed out, but it was something.

While you were sleeping, Asgore was busy trying to figure out the best way to get you home. All of you were instantly recognizable by both humans and monsters alike - there were already too many questions about where you'd been to be comfortable or avoidable. Everyone would be curious who the new skeleton was, too. It would open up a whole can of worms that nobody really wanted to face.

"we're being followed." Sans said quietly, so as not to wake you or Alphys, who had ended up stretched out asleep atop one of the machines. "blue sedan, behind us. been followin' us since about four towns back."

"We've changed highways since then." Asgore checked his mirror, and it wasn't good. "I don't suppose you can use one of your shortcuts?"

"on this whole car? there's no way." He was thoughtful for a moment. "Paps and Undyne are farther up than us, they can't run 'em off. i can get just us out, but nothing else."

"Well, that will have to do. We cannot risk anything else happening." Asgore said, firmly. "Brace yourself."

"what?"

The entire car was jostled as Asgore took an abrupt sharp turn into a field off the road, and the only reason nobody went flying was Sans' quick thinking with magic. Asgore pushed the van as fast as it would go, and when neither of them could see the headlights anymore, he finally stopped, with the tires squealing.

 

* * *

 

Toriel sat by the fire, reading one of her favorite fact books and trying not to worry more than she already did. You were finally well enough to come home, and while you still had a long journey ahead of you, you were okay. The home you shared was primed and ready several times over, and as comfortable as she could make it. They'd make sure you came home safe, they always did. 

She was startled out of her chair by a loud bang and thumb, followed by something toppling over in her living room. Toriel raced there, to find you, Sans, Asgore, and Alphys in a disheveled pile, gasping for air. Asgore was holding you, having shielded you from the impact, and Alphys was sprawled over a duffel bag. Sans was in the middle, covered in sweat but looking relieved. He gave Toriel a tired wave.

"hi honey, we're home."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "It might be a while" ended up meaning "long as hell chapter the next day", sorry ya'll. But hey, ten chapters in and we're finally out of the lab!
> 
> Hit me up on tumblr @ under-aftermath.tumblr.com, if you wanna.


	11. Chapter 11

Sans dreamt.

The first part of the dream took place on the mountain you led them out of. The air tasted sweet, and the sun's warmth felt fantastic on his bones. For the the first time in a long time, he actually felt hope. They were finally free, and it was thanks to you.

You had accepted the role of ambassador with a smile, and softly told Toriel you'd like to stay with her. Sans walked away to check on his brother with a genuine grin on his face. Sure, there'd probably be issues they'd run into, but things actually seemed to be looking up. For once, life might be peaceful.

Then the floor dropped out beneath him, and he was on a soft field of bright, yellow flowers. One in particular seemed to be sneering at him. Vines whipped out of the ground, tearing up flowers and intent on capturing Sans. He easily dodged, as always. The fall was a bit disorienting, but the vines swept and thrashed and missed their mark every single time.

"hey there Flowey." he greeted. "what are you doing here?"

The flower ignored his question, and instead began to think aloud. "Do you think Frisk is gonna reset?" Sans hated that sneer, and the singsong voice that didn't match the flower's ugly expression or actions. "Do you think Frisk is gonna find out?"

"not that its any of your business, but we'll tell 'em." Sans defended. This was just a dream anyway, it didn't really matter. He wanted back on the mountain, to feel the sun again. He could never get enough of it. It's not like you could reset anymore, anyway.

Right?

"I wonder, what will Frisk do with their free time?" Flowey's voice got sickly sweet, as did his expression. Sans resisted the urge to shudder. He wasn't going to let this flower get to him, let alone in a dream. "I mean, they can't really be ambassador anymore, can they?" 

"why should I tell you anything?" Dodge, dodge, swipe, dodge. Sans was grateful he couldn't really get tired when he was asleep already, but that didn't stop a slow creeping exhaustion from falling over him anyway. "this is a dream, anyway, so why don't you just _leaf._ "

"You've let yourself go, trashbag." Flowey taunted. "Did you even think of the consequences?"

Sans said nothing. This wasn't near as bad as his usual nightmares, but damn if it wasn't annoying. Best to just wait it out, he thought. The weed couldn't do much to him here, anyway.

The floor fell out from under him again, and this time he ended up standing in a very sterile white room. It took him a moment to recover from the dizzying fall, but when he managed to look around, Sans was filled with a dread he couldn't quite name. It looked like Alphys' lab, but much cleaner, and the air was thick with the smell of chemicals and magic. There were notes on a nearby counter, but they were mostly illegible.

To his right was a gurney, and you were on top of it. You looked like you did now, but you were covered in some sort of thick black substance. It oozed around your ribcage, and spilled out of your eyes. You didn't make a sound - Sans didn't even know if you could. You shuddered every few moments, your bones clacking together and making sickly wet noises against the ooze.

"Did you even think of the consequences?" He heard, the flower still taunting him through echoes. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a slightly short chapter today, but that's because it got hella long and I ended up chopping it in two. There's some mild fluff coming up, though!
> 
> Hit me up at under-aftermath.tumblr.com for all your Aftermath needs, if you'd like.


	12. Chapter 12

You awoke the next morning, groggy and sore. The last thing you remembered Asgore had snatched you out of the van and had whisked you away into darkness. The sunlight streaming through the window helped this some, bringing life into the quiet room.

The slow realization that you were home dawned on you, as you looked around at the mementos and photographs decorating the place. They didn't spark any memories, but they did bring a warm sense of familiarity. There was one with you and Papyrus cooking (covered in tomato sauce), one of you speaking in front of a large crowd with several translators, another of you and Undyne and Alphys in some sort of costumes. Another photo was Sans and Toriel in front of an altar, Papyrus very obviously crying in the background. Another showed Asgore and you smiling in front of a large garden.

You wished you could remember more. They seemed like they'd be pleasant memories, but for now you'd settle for familiarity. With a lot of effort and a bit of determination, you managed to drag yourself out of the bed and made your way to your closet, to see what you had to work with.

Eventually, dressed to the best of your ability in shorts and a hoodie, you slowly made your way out the door with your cane. The house was quiet, and the lights were low. You could hear a faint humming coming from downstairs, but that was it. You crossed through the living room, and found Sans asleep, sprawled out on the couch. Didn't he have a room with Toriel? He was murmuring something unintelligible, and had a bit of a grimace on his face. You decided it might be best to just leave him alone.

Toriel was in the kitchen, humming away as she cooked something up. You slid into a seat at the table and just watched her for a bit. She noticed, and smiled your way, but kept cooking. "Most everyone is still asleep," she said softly. "How are you feeling?"

_Sore,_ you answered. _Groggy. The usual._ You gave your best attempt at a grin, which seemed to cheer Toriel up immensely.

"Well, my child, I'm simply glad you're home." She beamed at you, and you couldn't help but beam back. "We will be keeping things calm around here, but we're all very happy you're doing better." She resumed cooking, her hum a bit more cheerful.

Eventually most of the rest of the crew shuffled in, or in the case of Alphys, was hauled in over their wife's shoulder. Asgore had some magnificent bedhead, and Papyrus was wearing a long t-shirt that just said COOLEST SLEEPER EVER in puff paint. You couldn't help a giggle, which brought a smile to everyones faces.

This was...this was the best you'd felt so far. Surrounded by loving family, even though so many pieces of the puzzle were missing.

Undyne managed to drink an entire carafe of coffee in one go, which resulted in Toriel banning her from the kitchen, apparently not for the first time. Breakfast was served, and Sans made his way in halfway through, still looking exhausted. Undyne tried to get him to drink an entire carafe of coffee too, but he just pulled out the ketchup and took a long drag, waving her off.

"SO FRISK!" Papyrus half said, half shouted once the table was cleared. "I HAVE MADE A SCHEDULE OF ACTIVITIES FOR YOU! FUN ACTIVITIES! WE NEED TO GET YOU UP AND MOVING!"

"Uh, Papyrus, the little punk might not be able to do much yet," Undyne pointed out.

"WELL, NO MATTER! WE CAN DO BOARD GAMES, OR COOKING, OR MOVIES, OR...OH!" Papyrus lit up. "YOU HAVE NOT YET SEEN SEVERAL NEW METTATON MOVIES!"

The rest of the table groaned. "N-not another m-marathon," Alphys muttered.

"NEVER FEAR, THE GREAT PAPYRUS ONLY PICKS THE BEST OF MEDIA TO CONSUME." The world swung around you, and you found yourself being carried off to the living room. "WE WILL START WITH INNER GLAMOUR, HIS ACTION/ADVENTURE AUTOBIOGRAPHY!"

The looks you got from your family were a mixture of amusement and sympathy, and they stayed put. A thought sprang to mind, and you grinned wickedly. Making sure Papyrus could see your hands, you signed, _The others should join in too! They can't miss this masterpiece._

"WHAT A PERFECT IDEA!" He gently laid you down on the couch, and bounded off to the other room, where you could hear another chorus of groans. They all gave in though, and soon enough you found yourself comfortably surrounded as awful techno music played through the intro of the movie.

You could feel a warm, fuzzy feeling deep down. This was wonderful.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing fluff is hard, y'all. 
> 
> Hit me up @ under-aftermath.tumblr.com for all your Aftermath and Aftermath accessory needs.


	13. Chapter 13

Somehow, without any actual lungs or throat to speak of, you were snoring. You'd fallen asleep snuggled into the couch, somewhere in the middle of Mettaton the Movie 25: Robo-Police. Asgore picked you up gently and carried you back to bed, thankful you couldn't hear Undyne making fun of you for how loud it was. He made his way back down after gently, cringing a bit when each and every step creaked.

Meanwhile, everyone else drifted back to the dining table, a little worn out from watching 5...unique movies in a row. There was a comfortable silence for a while, one they hadn't had in ages. Still, eventually Toriel cleared her throat and began to speak, somewhat apologetically. "While Frisk is asleep, we should discuss last night."

Sans sighed. "pretty sure it was anti-monster activists." Undyne nodded in agreement, adding that they'd probably tailed them on their way in and out of Alphys' lab before. There was the unfortunate fact that none of them had noticed anyone tailing them before, but that was put aside for the moment.

"We need a security detail." Undyne said firmly, punching her fist into her hand with a loud smack. Everyone else winced at the sound but she kept going. "If we've got people after us, they're probably after the little nerd."

"Who to ask, though." Toriel wondered.

The royal guard was brought up, and summarily dismissed due to most of them having families now. Undyne had an inside connection to a bodyguard service, but a phone call and a sigh later revealed that they were booked to the gills. Even the rectangle robot himself was brought up, but Alphys pointed out that he didn't exactly have the greatest defenses.

"I-I can build a security system? B-but with human laws i-it won't be much beside a c-camera," Alphys offered. Toriel thanked her and asked her to get started on it, just in case. Nobody really expected her to whip out the duffell bag and start constructing it right there, but then again, she'd built a robot. She could probably build a camera.

Undyne made as if to let out one of her trademark (loud) screams of frustration, but a sharp look from Toriel made it come out as more of a squeak. "We can't bring in the guard, or other guards, or heavy metal," she said as softly as she was able, before leaping up with fire in her eyes. "I'll be the kid's security!"

"Undyne, you cannot watch them all the time," Asgore said gently.

"We don't really have any better ideas though." She shrugged. "Besides, I've been there for what they went through, I'll understand more."

"S-speaking of which," Alphys said quietly, still focused on the wires and doodads in front of her. "When are w-we t-telling Frisk about what h-happened at the C-core?"

A dead silence dropped over the table. Alphys grew increasingly more uncomfortable and nervous before adding, "I d-don't like keeping this m-many secrets. Especially n-not anymore."

She'd told them about the amalgamates - there'd really been no way not to, as they helped her get them back home. Nobody had outright judged her, or given her grief, but she still hated feeling so tense and nervous about the truth. Alphys always made sure she could tell as much of the truth as possible nowadays.

"Well." Toriel said.

"Hmm." That one was from Undyne.

"WE SHOULD TELL THEM ONCE THEY WAKE UP." Papyrus said, ever the loud one. "THEY HAVE BEEN GIVING US LOOKS WHEN THEY THINK WE CAN'T NOTICE. THEY KNOW SOMETHING IS WRONG."

"yeah bro, they're..." sans trailed off, before shrugging. "sorry. fresh out of puns."

"OUT OF PUNS? ARE YOU FEELING ALRIGHT, BROTHER?"

"dandy as always paps. i'm gonna take a walk." sans said abruptly, before blinking out of existance. The others rolled their eyes and grumbled, but they weren't too angry about it. He'd be back eventually, probably at somettime late in the night. He'd stumble in, drunk off of magic and power, and lay out on the couch. Again.

Everyone had their own way of coping with things. Some were better at it than others.


	14. Chapter 14

_The Undergound, though abandoned entirely, did not go dark. No-one could quite figure out how to turn off the Core without a catastrophe, so it was left running as monsterkind left it behind. Occasionally Alphys would head down to check on it - she was the former royal scientist, after all - but it was left alone otherwise._

_It was a quiet journey back to Hotland. Even though the Underground was empty, they still took care in not making too much of a racket, or using too much magic at once. The denizens might have left, but that didn't mean things couldn't be dangerous._

_Papyrus carried your soul with him, in a small jar. It pulsed faintly, it's light a dim red glow. He picked up the pace as best he could. His brother had assured him you'd be able to last until they got there, but he didn't want to risk it. Asgore did his best to keep up while carrying you, and quietly directed Papryus on what way to go._

_Undyne insisted on carrying Alphys on her shoulders, despite numerous protests and an odd popping sound from one shoulder. Eventually Alphys resigned herself to her fate, and used Undyne's head as a sort of desk to study the schematics one more time._

_She's never been the greatest at reading hands, and that was before the incident wiped her memory for the longest time. Now all she had were broken bits of vocabulary and a drive to at least sort of crack the code. The pages were already covered with notes by the two scientists, half of which were Sans explaining the particularly complicated symbols._

_Alphys was worried about the soul container on the large machine, which had been hauled down to the Underground earlier with the aid of magic and as much strength as they could spare. The schematics had called for a very, very specific and difficult to find material, and had warned against using others. What they'd managed to find wasn't of the greatest quality, riddled with pockmarks and debris and somewhat fragile. There weren't really any other options, though, so they spruced it up the best they could and crafted the container._

_Who knew what would happen if it broke? What if it was interfering with the machine somehow? She shoved those troublesome out of her head as best she could, and tried to focus instead on not falling from Undyne's shoulders. Alphys still had to be picked back up several times._

_Sans and Toriel hung towards the back of the group, holding hands and saying nothing. Neither really knew what to say, anyway._

 

* * *

 

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͜[RE͝ÀDI͜N̛GS͞ ̛N/̨A  
́  
"URN̛" HAS͘ LO͡ST 3/4T͏H'S ̀O͢F ̀T́H̡ĘI̶R̷ F̛OR̛M. ̛WE DO̵ N̨OT ̶CURR͘ENTL̡Y̧ K̸N҉O̴W͘ T͘H̛E̷ ̡C̛AUS͢E ̨O͡F S̕UCH RAP̷ID̨ ͏DETE͜R͠I͡OR͡AT̵I̧O͟N. *̴**҉* I̢ŅJ͞EC͢TIO҉NS ̛WER͠E͘ ͝I̛NE̶F́FEC̵T͢I̕V̷E͠.͠ ́P͟ĮTY.]̶  
  
[͜TES͝T͝ ̨SU͜B̵JE͏CT "UR̛N"͞ HA̕S͢ BE̕EN ͜DI͡SP̴O͏SEḐ ҉OF͝.͠ ̵B̷EGI̴N͡NIN̴G̷ ̀ON T̛H͝E̸ MORR̛ÓW, ̢T͏E̷ST S̷ÚB̵JE̡C͜T X4͜18͡ [C̡OD͢ENA͡ME: "̛C͜ÍST͢ER̸N͡"̨] ̀W̴I̵L͞L ͘B͡EGIN҉ P͘R̕EL̵IM͢INAR̢Y̕ P̀RO̵C͞E̶DUR̕E͏S̶.͜]̸

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No joke, I'm super excited for what's coming up. We're getting somewhere with the plot!


	15. Chapter 15

It was still early evening, so the sun still warmed the earth outside. No monster could ever get enough of the sun, Sans included. It felt like a warm embrace, every time. After lifetimes spent underground, it was enough to make anyone feel giddy.

Sans wasn't real giddy today, though. The nightmare he'd had still hung over his head like a damn stormcloud. He mentally kicked himself for being so shook up - it was just a dream, why let it get to him? If there was one thing he'd learned though, it was that nothing surrounding you was just an anything, so it could be more than just a dream. But he didn't know. That's what he hated.

With reset after reset, he generally got to know anything and everything undergound. He couldn't remember every single timeline, but he remembered enough. He was familiar with everything, and if something weird happened he could always figure his way around it.

Nowadays though, he couldn't predict anything. He hadn't foreseen you dying so young, for one. Sans couldn't have predicted that you'd be walking around as skin and bones one year, and just bones the next. Who the hell could have seen that coming?

God, he knew why it was messing him up so bad. Seeing you covered in that black ooze, like his old boss...he collapsed on a park bench, exhausted. He was ready to sleep until the end of time. Using that magic to transport you all took a lot out of him, and Sans hadn't exactly gotten the most restorative sleep ever. Things hadn't exactly gone easily for any part of the process with you, honestly.

Sans sighed. Things had been way too serious lately. As soon as things settled down, he was going to take a good long vacation to do precisely nothing. Hopefully Toriel would join him.

Speaking of which...what the hell, it'd been a while. Why not hit up Grillby's? He could use a drink. Or five. Sans hauled himself up from the bench and squinted around him. When had it gotten to be night-time, anyway?

While he shuffled his way down the street towards the old, familiar bar, Sans checked his phone. He had a good number of messages, a couple of missed calls, and several...anime faces? From Alphys, of course. It used to be that the only messages or calls Sans ever got where pictures of various bones by Papyrus and calls describing said bones. And puzzles.

Now he had the closest thing to a big happy family he'd ever get. And it was thanks to you, the scrawny little kid who'd tumbled headfirst into a mountain.

The ketchup and whiskey at Grillby's could wait. Sans changed course, and headed home instead. He owed it to you to finally explain what happened. They all did, big time. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slight bit of a filler chapter while I figure out exactly how to write out the Big Discussion the crew will have with Frisk. Also, I'll have ya'll know I had a really good pun regarding Monster Kid to use for this chapter, but it ended up getting scrapped in favor of Introspection Time with Sans. orz


	16. Chapter 16

Everyone was pleasantly surprised to see Sans back so soon (well, relatively), and so coherent. They'd all settled around the kitchen table again.  
  
"F-f-finally." Alphys murmured out when Sans showed up and explained what he thought. She almost added a "fucking" to the beginning of that, but a glare from Toriel shut off that idea real quick. She was normally okay with cursing among adult company, but right now wasn't the time. Back to building that camera, then.

"So, what, we just tellin' the punk when they wake up, or what?" Undyne asked, leaning back in her chair.

"We will have dinner, and then we will tell Frisk." Toriel decided. "No sense in learning the truth on an empty stomach."

"lemme guess, snail pie?" Sans asked, giving her a peck on the cheek. Well, as much as a skeleton could.

Toriel gave him a Look. She was good at those, he mused. "For your information, I have other recipes. I have a ton of them." Her eyes twinkled. "A _skele_ -ton."

The chorus of groans made a comeback. "YOU TWO MAKE THAT JOKE LIKE EVERY DAY OH MY GOD," Papyrus fumed, but he still had a little grin on his face. It was nice to be back like this, sitting around a table and chatting. Things weren't back to the way they were before, but it was a big step towards getting back to normal.

"I bet it's still snails, though." Undyne chuckled.

"Not to bring the mood down, but we need to decide the best course of action before Frisk wakes up," Asgore said, and the others nodded, somewhat half-heartedly. "I believe it might be best to simply show them."

"M-my magic reserves are still p-pretty low," Alphys said, "a-and so are everyone e-elses. W-would that be safe?"

"I dunno." Undyne mused. "I mean, all of us together were pretty strong, we could at least get a simple memory spell goin'."

"my concern is that the kid won't be able to take any magic right now. they don't exactly have control over their own, yet." Sans pointed out.

Toriel was quiet for a bit. "I had hoped to have a nice talk with them, but..." She threw up her hand in defeat. "I still cannot think of how to explain it. I think Asgore is right." For once, she thought, but she kept that to herself. No need to take her stress out on him.

"I t-think that if w-we monitor them, it'd be okay," Alphys mused. "N-not exactly s-safe, but okay."

"the moment something seems off, we shut the whole thing down." Sans was firm, and nobody really disagreed with him.

"IT'S SETTLED THEN! WHEN FRISK WAKES UP, WE CAN SHOW THEM WHAT HAPPENED. AFTER THEY GET PROPER NOURISHMENT, OF COURSE." Papyrus stood up, and swept his "cape" behind him. "WE SHALL TELL THEM OF OUR HEROICS."

"That's one word you could use..." Undyne muttered.

\---

You were back in the nothing, but it had changed somehow? You felt like you weren't alone, not by several magnitudes. The nothing itself seemed to undulate and speak, though for the life of you, you couldn't understand what it was saying. It was all garbled and broken, and hurt somewhat to listen to.

You arms twitched, and the nothing around you was filled with red sparks. Your magic felt...comfortable? Like you were stretching out a limb that had fallen asleep. In the waking world, it still felt uncomfortable and sort of scary - it could get out of control so easily - but here it felt easy and, well, right.

The sparks shifted. Some of them seemed to form a face, a ghastly one with jagged cracks running down each side. An uneven, broken mouth formed and seemed to say something, but you couldn't hear anything.

But you could see something.

Your magic moved again, making you uneasy and driving you to try and cut the magic off entirely. Several tries later, it became clear: you couldn't seem to retract the magic at all. While you were busy trying to shut it down, the sparks formed weird symbols you couldn't understand.

You froze as a voice echoed in your head. It was broken still, and distorted, but you could just make it out.

"͈̰̭͈̲̮̤͠W̛͎̬̳͍̞̗È̜L̺͘C͔̬O̤ME̙̘̖̰͖͍̠ ҉͇̪̮̜̬H̯̘̞̀O̲̻̖M̞̟̭̪E҉̣.̤͈͙͔"̞

You gasped and jolted awake, and above you, you could see the dissapating remnants of red magic. The symbols had been floating above you as you slept.

There was a knock at the door. "FRISK! ARE YOU AWAKE? THERE IS FOOD! IT ISN'T SNAILS THIS TIME!"

In a panic, you waved your arm through the fading magic, trying to get it to fade faster. The door creaked open as the last of it faded away, and a weight was lifted off your chest.

Later, you couldn't really remember why.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shoutout to whoever created the Zalgo text generator, they're a lifesaver for when you can't actually do fancy fonts.


	17. Chapter 17

The nightmare slowly faded away from your thoughts as you followed Papyrus back to the dining room. You'd slept straight through the day, so you groggily settled down to a surprisingly not-snail-filled dinner. The others were just as surprised as you were. Toriel huffed at the idea that she only knew how to cook snails, but you suspected she'd only cooked without them to prove a point.

Dinner went fine, if a little quickly. Nobody was really interested in talking, it seemed, so the air was filled with a comfortable silence. You tried to ask exactly where you food was going to once you swallowed it - shouldn't it just fall out? - but Papyrus merely shrugged.

"IT JUST...GOES? I TRY NOT TO THINK ABOUT IT."  
  
"'s magic," Sans waved around his fork, "magic is kinda the answer for a lot of things about monsters."

You looked down at yourself, curious. Sure enough, you didn't see any food emerge, but you did get a little creeped out at inspecting your own ribs. Judging by the awkward coughs of Undyne and Papyrus, the others were getting a little weirded out too.

 _So...this is my soul, right? My body?_ You signed, dinner forgotten.

"Now that you are, ah, one of us, your soul does make up your body." Asgore was obviously trying to find a good way to phrase it, but was failing. "It makes up your whole being."

 _Is that why my magic is red?_ You asked. _Is that where my determination went?_

"Eat, and then we will answer any questions you have, Frisk." Toriel said it in a way that brooked no argument, and the rest of dinner passed quietly.

 

* * *

 

This time, everyone gathered in the living room, making themselves as comfortable as possible. You were wedged in between Toriel and Sans on the couch, with Undyne and Alphys taking up the loveseat. Papyrus was on the other side of Sans, slightly smushed into a corner. Asgore took the lone remaining chair.

"My child," Toriel began slowly. "We will answer any questions you have. Fully, this time."

Your eyes lit up, finally!

...your eyes actually lit up, startling you. You could feel little pinpricks of magic in there, but it was an easy sensation to ignore. Sans laughed at your startled expression and pointed at his own eyes. "looks like we've got similar eyes, kiddo. they come and go."

"FRISK! WHY BE LIKE MY BROTHER WHEN YOU CAN BE LIKE ME?" Papyrus did his best to pose, but it was a little difficult with being smushed in the corner. He settled for "flexing." "I HAVE NO PUPILS AND I'M STILL VERY GREAT!"

"You get all starry-eyed over Mettaton." Undyne laughed. "Literally."

"T-THAT'S DIFFERENT."

"Children." Asgore said firmly. He was trying not to smile. "We have something more important to discuss here."

"As I was saying, we will answer any questions you have. But," Toriel smiled down at you, doing her best to be re-assuring. "We feel that showing you might be best. Then after, we can answer anything you like."

You were a little bummed that the fun was cut short, but you'd been waiting on this for what felt like forever. You nodded, and if you still had a throat you would have gulped nervously. Meanwhile, Alphys pulled out a clunky little device with a large screen, and made her way over to you.

"W-we're going to be doing a m-memory spell." She explained, as she attached the little device to you via electrodes and wire. "B-but we need to m-make sure you can view it s-safely. T-his'll sound an alarm if anything goes, uh, wrong."

Once you were all hooked up, Alphys stepped back and looked at the others. "N-no t-time like the present," she stuttered out.

Your family nodded, and you felt the hum of magic around you. You blacked out soon after.

 

* * *

 

_The machine blared to life, your soul spinning in the container at the bottom of the machine. Your family was daring to hope, and it looked like things would go okay. Finally._

_"now once their soul is, uh, charged up, we'll send it back down to their body. the magic should disperse and get them back to us."_

_Toriel was quiet, for the most part. She'd fought very hard to be here, and had done so many things to bring you back. Guilt still plauged her though, and kept growing heavier on her soul. You wouldn't mind being brought back, would you? And would you be angry you weren't human anymore?_

_Of course, you'd still look human on the outside, but your soul...your soul would be the bright, stark white of monsters. The determination and energy from the core would (hopefully) infuse your body with magic, jumpstarting your soul and bringing you back. You'd been, well, dead for a while now, but your soul still hung around. Supposedly, that meant your body would heal itself as long as your soul successfully re-attached._

_It was all theories, though. Sans had explained the operation to her, and had shown her the schematics he'd recovered, translating as much as he could. An old scientist, though Toriel could not exactly remember which one, had done extensive research into how souls functioned, and had hoped to revive monsters that had "fallen down." As far as Toriel could tell, it hadn't worked, or they'd never gotten the chance to actually try it. She stared at you, lost in thought, while the others milled around._

_"S-sans, the container is vibrating a bit, should we stop?" Alphys whispered worriedly._

_"we've got the biggest generator in the Underground powering the thing, of course it's gonna vibrate." Sans gave her his lazy grin. "it'll be fine, I'm pa-tellin' ya."_

_Alphys rolled her eyes, but calmed down anyway. "If you f-feel okay enough t-to pun, I guess it's f-fine."_

_They went back to preparations, and before long they were almost ready to begin the procedure. Before starting everything up, everyone simply huddled together for a moment, just to be close. They were all incredibly nervous. This was big. There was a lot that could go wrong._  
  
_But they could finally get you back._  
  
_There was a strange, metallic ring in the air. "IS METTATON VISITING?" Papyrus asked, glancing around and breaking the huddle._

_"My - Sans, my child!" Toriel cried, pointing to the container._

_No longer whirling around, your soul was still, it's dim glow finally fading completely. Another metallic sound rang out, and to everyone's horror, your soul shattered._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This got long, so part two will be coming tomorrow or the day after. :D I beseech you to mind the tags for the next part.


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content Warning: This chapter contains some gore/body horror towards the end.

[R͞E҉ÀDIN̛G͠S: ͟N͡/A̡  
  
"CIS͜T̷E͠RN҉" ́HAS ̷PROV͟E̷N TO͡ BE̛ ́A̧ ͞F̶ÁI͡L͜URE,̛ ̕FOR ̡T̕H͟E M͢OS̢T ͝PAR̢T̢.̕ TH̢E͏Y HA̢VE REMAI̸NED ̧U͏NRESP̛O҉N̵SIVE̡,̸ A̴S͏ IF̢ ̀T͡H̕EY͠ ͏HAVE͏ JU͠S͞T́ F́A͜LLE̷N ḐO̢WN̷. ̸NO A̕MO̧U͘NT ͘OF͢ ̕I͘NJEĆT͠I͝ONS͞ SE͞ĘM̵ ̧TO ͟S̴TIR͟ ҉THE̴M̴, B̵U̡T ̨T͞HÉY̡ ͝HA҉V̨E NOT C͟RU͢MB̀L̢E̛D͢ T̛O D͝UST͏ ͠A̢Ş ÒF̀ YE̵T.̡ ҉W͞I̶LL͠ CON͟TIN̢UE MO̧N͏ITORI̢NG̷ ̧WH͡IL͠E T͜ES͟T҉ ̢S͢U̕BJ̴E͜C̀T̸ X́4̕1͡9͡ (͟CODE҉N̶A͜ME:̸ ͞"̸OS̷SUA͝RY̛"͜) ̵IS PR̸ÉP̶P͡E͞D͘.̡]̛  
[READI̷NG͠S̛:̛ ̀M͠O̶D͘E͡RA̢TELY͘ LO̕W͠ L̀E͏VĘĻS̀ OF ͡H̢P  
ÒT͘HE͘R R̛EA͘D͜IN̡GS̸ A̢R̸E ͡S̡T͞A̛BL͠E͝  
̧  
"͟OSS̶U̴A͏RY͡"͡ ĮS A̛ C͏ON͝UNDRUM.̡ ͘TH̸EY̷ AWOKE͞ WI̶T͟H̵ ̧LI͜T͘T͡L̷E ME̸M͏ORY, ͘BUT̀ ͏ḰE͜PT͜ ̴A͏S͡K͜I̛ǸG ̀F͟OR͝ ͞THEI͜R M҉OT͢H͠E͘R. ͘T̕HEY҉ R͞ESPO̶ND҉ ̸T̀Ǫ SUG͠GES̕TI̛O̢N̴S,͠ ̕BU͟T͢ ͡NO̷T͟ DÌREC̴T OR̡D͟E̸RS̵. ̨T̸HI̸S ́L̢EVEL ҉OF̵ IND̢EP͞E̢ND̡ENCE͏ IS̀ UNA͡CC̴ĘP͜T͟AB̶L̛E, B͠UT N͏ÒT͢ ̀UN̸FI͏XAB͞LE.͠ ͢I͜ ͟W̵I͜LL ͠BE ̶RE҉CR͏UITI͡ǸG ͟D̀ŖS̛.̶ ̷***́** AND ̕***̧**͘** ̸TO̕ ASSI͞S̨T WI͘T̡H ̢ŢH͝E͏ ͟A͠PP̴ROPR̀I̧AT͠E ͏P̛RO͝C͡E͢DUR̴E̢]̕

[RE̡ADI̵NǴS҉:̵ ̸N/̡A  
  
"̸O̧SSU̡A͠RÝ"́ ͠ST͘RU͠CK͢ O͠U̢T̴ ̶ÀT ́AN҉ ASSI͞ST͏ĄN͜T͞, WH҉O̶ ̀ST͢R̛UCK̸ ̧BA̷C͡K̸ I͘N R͜E̕TALI҉A̷T͝I͏ON. ̕"̷OSSU̕ARY" ̷IS͡ ̶N͢OẀ ͟DU̵ST̨. THI̸S̕ IS ͡UNF͏ORTU̧N̡A̵T͘E͘,̴ ̕AS ͢WE W͟ERÈ ̴CEŔTA҉IN TH͢E͢ *͞*̡*̛* EXT̶RACT͠I̷ON WO̸UL̡D ̶FI͠X AN͏Y͢ ̨L̕IN͜G͡ERING ISSUE̸Ś.̷ T̵ĘS͡T̕ ͢SUBJE̷C̵T X420 ͝(C̨ODENA̢M͢E:̶ ̸"C̛APS͠U͠LE̡"̧)̶ ͞IS B͠EÍNG͡ RȨS̡ŢRAI̛N̷E͟D̕ ͝AND ̨P̷REPPĘD̨ ̀A͟CC͡O̢RDIN̢G̕L͢Y.͝  
  
̵"͘C̢I҉S̛T͜ERN" R͜E͘MAI͝N͢S҉ CǪMA͘T̢OS̵E, ̀W̨I͡T̶H͝ NO͞ ҉S̶TATU͟S͏ ͏CHAN͘GE͟S.̢ ̢WÈ H̕AV͜E N͜OT̸E̷D̸ SLIGHT̕L̷Y͞ M̢O͏R̨E S͠OUL̀ A̧CTI͜V̛IT̨Y̴ T͡H͟AN ̵F͢O̢U҉N͢D͏ ͡IN ̢TH̢E ͘F͜AL̶L͞EN ̡DOWN̕, ̧BÙT̢ ͞ON҉ĹY͡ ͏SLIG͞ḨT̴ĹY.͢]͏  
  
[͟P͘E̸R̛S̢ÒǸAL ĻÒG  
  
IT͠ HAS BEȨN̶ M̡O͝NT̶H͝S͡. ̴T̡H̸I͟S̶ ͜RESEA̛R̶CH̴ IŚ GOI͟N͜G NOWH͞ERĘ.͜ ͟NONE͜ ǪF̸ ̛T̀HE TE͠ST̸ ͠S̸U͡B̶J͡ECTS ͝S͝Ơ F̢AR ͡HAV͞Ȩ ͠PROV͘EN͘ ̧T̀O̵ B̕E̸ OF MUC̛H͘ ͞U͢SE, ͏SAVE̢ FOR ̸C̨I̵SŢERN͜, WH̨O͏ REMAINS͝ ̵INTA͘C̷T ̢BU͞T U͘SELE̡SS ̕OTHE̷R̕WI͜S͏E̴. ͜I ̧AM ̸BE̶GINNING ̨T͘O͟ SU̢SP̢E҉C҉T TH̀AT̴ ̸M̧O͟NSTER S͠OUL̢S̛ ARE UN͏AB̛LE̸ T̀O ̴H̸AN͜D̸LE T͝ḨÉ ͠HE҉AV͜Y AMO̢U̵NT̢S ̕OF͡ ͢MAGIC,̴ P͝OW͠ER,҉ AND ̧*̨*̀*͟*͟*͟ U͏SED, B̀UT̴ T̛H̶E͏RE IS͞ ̡N͘O͘ A̢LT͘ER̕N͢A͞T̸IV̷E̵, ̵F͡OR͘ ͞E͝ITHER MA͘T͢E̶R͡I̧A͏L͟S ͘O̶R̷ SO͠ULS͡.  
P҉ERHA̴PS I̛'̨LL S̡P͟EAK͜ WI͝T͢H͘ ҉T̢HE̕ K̡ING͜ ̸O̕N TH̛E ̶S̕U̕B̶J͘ÈC͡T̀.̡ ҉HE ͘S͞ȨȨMS MÒRE ACCE͞P̸TIN̕G͠ ̧OF̢ ŢH҉I̵S̸ ̧S͏IDE ̕OF͟ ̢THIN͢G͏Ś ͠S͟INC͝E ̸THE ̴IŃCI̛D̡ÈNT, A҉N͝D TH͟E T͘ḨR͏E͢E F̕O̷LLOW̡I̛N͜G͢.̛ ҉ON̵E҉ ҉CAN O̕NLY H͡O͝P͢E HE͝ ͞C҉ĄN ͞SEE ͜T̵HAT T̸H̛IŚ ͝ĆOU͢LD ͡B͠E ̀A͢ BRE̷AKTH҉ROU͞G̢H. W̡E ̧AR̀E A ̶LǪNG ͝L͡I̛VE̕D ̧SṔEÇI͝ES, ̴I҉'̷M S̶URE͝ A̵N͝ÓTH͠E͞R͏ ͏WIL̀L͢ ҉F̕AL̶L ̵D̀OW̵N SO͘O͡N͜ ENƠUG͞H́.̶]͢

 

* * *

 

_It felt like their own hearts were shattering, as they watched the very essence of your being shatter._

_And re-form._

_And shatter._

_It was like watching you die, over and over, in one big long unending loop. Sans had felt this way before. He'd never, ever wanted to feel as hopeless as this again._

_You were trying to reset, he thought. Every time your soul re-formed, it was more cracked. More chipped. Less likely to bring you back. It's light was so, so dim. He wanted to reach out with his own magic, to maybe make it so it couldn't move and break apart - but nothing could reach through that container. They'd made sure of it._

_"Sans." Toriel's voice was but a whisper. "I cannot stand to watch this over and over. Please..."_

_Papyrus was stock-still. "BROTHER, THEY'LL BE FINE, RIGHT? THE MACHINE WILL...THIS IS MERELY A SETBACK, RIGHT?"_

_"I." Alphys was struggling to get the words out. "I. I didn't...I d-don't..." Undyne knelt down and hugged her close, but anyone who knew her could see the pain on her face._

_There were voices in the background, but they were dim, and Sans was lost in thought. What if they let the you out? Would you be able to reset that far back? Could they go through that again? Could you? What about all the work they had to do just to get the you back in the first place? Sans doubted any of them had the stomach to make the same sort of dealing they did with those...people to get what they needed. He also doubted that any of them would hesitate to do it all over again._

_To them, it'd be the first time through, anyway._

  
SHATTER

  
_slowly it - you - came back together, several parts fading away to nothing, the light draining further with them_

  
SHATTER

  
_shakily this time, and even slower, the almost dark heart managed to form together once more, this time with notably jagged edges_

  
SHATTER

 

_It happened almost in slow motion. You re-formed, one last time, and then shattered. And stayed shattered. And then..._

_The room felt wrong. Time ground to a halt, as did the world around Sans, but he was left moving. This all felt so, so, familiar, and so, so wrong, and this was not the time to be having a flashback, he couldn't be having a flashback, not now -_

_He wasn't. Sans could feel the power of the Core, paused mid flow. He could see your soul, laying in pieces. Sans could see his sins, and the others. They weren't pleasant to look at. He'd give anything to be anywhere but here at this moment, where the world was falling down around him, and not for the first time._

_There was a brilliant, near blinding white light that burst from the container and radiated outwards. Sans cried out and fell, shielding his eyes. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the others do the same, falling slowly to the ground. Time was resuming it's course. The light passed over you, then him, then the others, and finally the world ran normally again._

_A soul, a small and brilliantly white gleaming monster soul, spun softly in the container. Swirling shards of red glowed dimly beneath it, devoid of any life, but filled with determination. Alphys let out a hysterical whoop of laughter and Undyne tried to pretend she wasn't crying. Papyrus and Asgore leaned against each other, making it perfectly clear that they were tearing up. Toriel was frozen, as if she couldn't quite believe it._

_"W-we s-should get them back into their body! Right n-now! Oh-my-god-it's-finally-" Alphys' ramblings were stopped by a moderate smooch and a smile, and she tried her best to give Undyne a shaky grin back._

_The machine was lowered, and pointed at your limp body. If all went according to plan, your soul would float down with the determination and built up Core energy and jumpstart you back into being._

_Toriel screamed in horror. Asgore couldn't bear to look. Papyrus couldn't bear to move._

_Your soul wasn't going in. It was going_ through.

_"Undyne, i need you to get everyone out. now." Sans gritted out through his teeth. Undyne, to her credit, just nodded and got everyone out of there, with only a single look of shock over her shoulder. Asgore was the last to leave, finally gazing on the scene before him and standing still with shock, but he let himself be not-so-gently tugged away by the others in the end. Sans just watched grimly as the grisly scene unfolded in front of him._

_Sans didn't quite know why he stood there, watching as you were torn to shreds. To repent, maybe? Your chest burst apart, and deep red blood went flying. Sinew and muscle were cut through like butter. The only thing the shards and soul seemed to miss were your bones. The rest of you was cut to ribbons, and blown away by the sheer force of everything. The room looked akin to a murder scene._

_There was another metallic sound but...reversed, this time? The soul shot towards your skull, and for a brief moment your skeleton glowed brilliantly - white at first, and then red as the energy and determination hit. Your skeleton jumped and rattled, moving the long forgotten organs and other sundries to the floor._

_Then you took a deep, rasping breath, and the glow faded, your bones returning to a suprisingly pristine off-white. You fell back down to the table with a clatter, unconcious. The machine powered itself off with a loud whir and a grind. For the first time in a while, the room was silent._

_"S-sans? S- oh my god." Alphys had peeked around the corner and found herself knee deep in what used to be you. She stared at Sans in horror, then at the slowly breathing skeleton on the table, and her expression turned into a mix of wonder and concern. It shifted back to a mix of all three once she realized yet agian what she was standing in._

_"Al, i don't even know where to start." Sans said, honestly._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was a doozy! I'm not sure I'm 100% happy with it at the mo, but I'm also tired of looking at it and revising it, so.


	19. Chapter 19

**BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP**

Oh man, your alarm. Was it time for school already?

**BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP**

You tried moving your hands, but it was difficult, and you were as slow as molasses. Still, you knew Toriel was watching, and managed to get out a _five more minutes,Mom_  before trying to go back to sleep.

"Punk, we're gonna need you to wake up right fucking now."

Undyne? What was she doing here? They lived close, but it was weird for her to be the one to wake you up. Right?

**BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP**

You heard a choked sob somewhere in the distance, and felt a paw on your arm. "My child, you must wake up now."

Memories of what you'd just seen crashed over you like a terrifying, tall, dark wave. The sight of your soul breaking to pieces. The sight of your family crying. The sight of your body just being...torn...

Your eyes flew open, and you saw Undyne hovering over you worriedly. You were laying across Toriel's lap, still on the couch. Undyne let out a sigh of relief. "The machine didn't work right. You saw a hell of a lot more than we meant to show ya."

The sobbing continued. You tried to get up and see what was going on, but Toriel gently held you down. "Alphys is still working on detaching you safely," she warned, and you could see the yellow lizard frantically handling the machine out of the corner of your eye, muttering. It was smoking.

"I'm sure you have a bunch of questions, nerd, but those are gonna have to wait." The look in Undyne's eyes was a mixture of concern and annoyance. "Sans let his memories leak in and it's hittin' him pretty hard. Paps took him to another room to wind down."

"Undyne." Toriel spoke in a voice that wasn't quite harsh, but wasn't quite friendly. "We need to speak about what is appropriate to bring up in front of Frisk.

Undyne chose to ignore that and instead let the annoyance go from her face. "How are you doing?" she asked. You felt bad. In a corner of your memories you couldn't quite access, you knew that she was usually a lot more brash and feisty. Right now she was the farthest from it.

It was probably just due to the stress of everything, you assumed, and let her know that you were okay, if a bit frazzled. You were still numb from it all.

"Damn, really?" Undyne saw the look on your face and snorted. "No offense meant kid, but you look like shit."

"Undyne."

"Toriel, I mean this in the most respectful way possible, but the kid freed our asses and just saw themselves being torn apart. I think the punk can hande cuss words."

"I wasn't aware that it was up to you to decide what they could handle, Undyne."

"You can't treat them like they don't know their ass from the sky forever, Toriel."

With all the energy you could muster, you waved your hands in front of them. Definitely the stress, you thought. No fighting.

They both looked down at you, then back at each other. Undyne muttered a quick sorry, and Toriel patted her awkwardly on the shoulder. Slumping down a bit, Undyne shot you an apologetic smile. "It's been a long few months, nerd, we're all feelin' it."

The sobs had died down in the background - they weren't gone, but they were muffled, and shorter. You coud feel your own tears forming even as you tried to smile back. The shock was wearing off, and you were reeling. You'd...you'd been ripped to shreds. And almost died, for good. There were still many puzzle pieces missing, but you had far more to work with, and your brain wasted no time in replaying the scenes over and over.

Did you actually have a physical brain anymore? You didn't know. You knew you didn't have tear ducts, but you were crying all the same. _I almost...I almost...,_ you signed shakily. _Did you...did you guys know that happened? Me being..._

"I'm so sorry, my child." Toriel interrupted and held you close, and stroked your head. It was an odd feeling, but comforting. "We did know. We did not witness it, though. I can - " her voice caught in her throat. "You are still with us, though, my child. That is what matters."

You stilled in her embrace, and eventually your tears stopped flowing. You almost fell asleep, but to your surprise Toriel prodded you awake. "It is not safe for you to sleep so soon afterwards," She explained. "The risk is too high for complications."

Undyne glanced over at Alphys. "Babe, how long is it gonna be?"

"A-almost g-got it," Alphys muttered absently. "A-alarm's s-shut off."

From elsewhere in the room, you heard Asgore cough a little awkwardly. "Is there any way I can help?"

"Go brew up some coffee, s-dude." Undyne squeezed your hand and glanced back at him. "It's gonna be a long night."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sans prooobably shouldn't have done the thing so quickly after having to take a "walk." He'll be "ok" soon, don't worry. 
> 
> Also, thanks again for all the kudos, comments, and everything else guys! I can't believe it's gotten this much attention, holy cow.


	20. Chapter 20

It didn't matter that you didn't technically have taste buds anymore, coffee was disgusting.

"Thats why you gotta add an a - " Undyne shot a quick glance at Toriel. "A bunch of sugar. And creamer. And cream." She pushed all three your way, and you valiantly tried to doctor your drink up to your admittedly low standards.

"I-is that still t-technically coffee?" Alphys asked, frowning at Undyne's mug. "It's a-almost pure w-white in there." To be honest, you were suprised she'd grabbed a mug in the first place. From what you'd seen, she usually doctored up the whole thing and downed it in one go.

The house was quiet. Sans had stopped sobbing, but was still calming down with Papyrus. In the meantime, the rest of you sat in the living room, sipping coffee and dancing around the topic of what you and they had just seen. In a way, you were sort of grateful for the reprieve. It gave you more time to process everything, and to maybe calm down a little yourself.

Toriel gave you a sideways glance, as several sparks of red flashed around you. You smiled back, trying to will the sparks to die down. "My child, you know you will still need to sleep at some point tonight, yes?"

You glanced down at the mug in your hand, and back at her. _Decaf,_ you signed. She relaxed a bit and went back to her own drink, which she took black as night. Good, she bought it, you thought. Undyne just winked at you.

Alphys had finished up her camera, and cradled a tall can of something called Human. When you tried to raise your eyebrow - brow bone? - at her, she laughed. "E-energy drink," She explained, turning the can around. On it a monster was doing some sort of skateboard trick.

Asgore just sort of stared down into his mug. He vastly preferred tea, but needs do as needs must. His coffee was almost paler than Undyne's.

There was a weird static to the air. You figured it was just your magic - you still didn't really know how to handle it. The others didn't react, so you didn't worry about it. It didn't really feel bad, just different. A little comforting, really.

"Frisk? Frisk, you alright?" You realized Undyne had been saying something. You shook your head a bit and nodded. "You were zoning out pretty hard there, nerd. Are you sure you don't want to head to bed?"

 _I've kind of slept a lot lately,_ you signed, laughing a little. _I'll be okay._

So you and yours passed the time idly chatting and sipping coffee, as much as you could anyway. You were exhausted, and felt like you'd been wrung out to dry, but you were determined to stay up and wait until Sans had recovered enough to join in.

The coffee was still gross, though.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slightly short chapter this time around - I'm having a bad case of writer's block with what was going to be ch. 20, so have this slightly fluffy filler instead.


	21. Chapter 21

In the other room, Sans was coming down from having a pretty bad time. He had no intention of letting his memories leak in - to be honest, he and the others had sort of hoped to avoid that part. That plan was blown to hell, though. God, you'd seen everything. Sans wouldn't wish that on anyone.

"BROTHER? I BROUGHT YOU SOME TEA." A mug was placed in front of Sans, who regarded it blearily. It was faintly magical, and smelled of flowers. "THERE IS COFFEE ALSO, BUT THIS WILL BE MORE HELPFUL."

"thanks, bro." Sans grumbled, taking a sip. He felt a little better, but not by much. "the kiddo okay?"

"FRISK IS DANDY, THEY'RE ALL IN THE LIVING ROOM RIGHT NOW." Papyrus regarded Sans with a kind look. "IF YOU ARE WORRIED THEY ARE ANGRY, THEY ARE NOT, OR AT LEAST I DON'T THINK SO! AND I AM A GREAT JUDGE OF THESE THINGS."

Sans wasn't sure if you were dandy, but he also hadn't heard any commotion, so he shrugged it off. "'s not that."

"WHAT IS IT THEN, BROTHER?"

"it uh..." Sans slumped down a little further. "i had a nightmare last night. nothin' good happened. kinda messed me up."

"SANS, WHY DIDN'T YOU SAY SO?" Sans found himself drawn into a bone-crushing hug. His brother went on about brotherly love and how family was there for him and wouldn't let him go.

"'m tea is gettin' cold," Sans pointed out, muffled against Papyrus' ribs. He didn't really mind, though.

 

* * *

  
You were almost asleep on the couch, wrapped in a blanket Asgore had knit and surrounded by a comforting white noise. The static was still there, but in the background, providing a soothing backdrop to what the others were saying.

"Once, when I was young, I had wanted to be a warrior," Toriel mentioned, and you could have sworn Undyne's eye actualy sparkled at the news. "I was horrible with weapons though, and got called away with other duties."

"I CAN TEACH YOU!" Undyne exclaimed, causing poor Alphys to jump and almost fall to the floor. "I mean, uh, if you want to. I guess."

"Trust me, I tried." Asgore spoke up. "There is no hope for poor Tori, I'm afraid."

Toriel laughed softly, and

and

you weren't in the living room anymore.

You were still on the couch, oddly enough. Still wrapped up in blankets. You were in a large, stark white room that smelled something like the lab. The static seemed to press in on you, like another, larger blanket. It was comforting. You had no idea what was going on, but it didn't particularly bother you.

On some level, you thought that it should. But, you thought, you still didn't know how to handle your magic. This could just be side effect or something. Didn't monsters get magical illnesses too? Maybe that was it.

You'd probably fallen asleep. That was it, you decided. This was just a weird dream. You were tired, anyway, you must have dozed off.

You closed your eyes for a moment, leaned back, and was content to just lay there for a while. It wasn't an exciting dream, but it was relaxing.

I͠͝N̸̡T͏̶ER҉͜ES̶T͝I̸N͘G͡͏.͞҉

You were pulled out of a doze to find a...something. It was melting continuously, with a white mask of a face. You'd seen it somewhere before, hadn't you?

P̢L̷E̵̴͘A̶SE͠ ҉D̨̨̛O͠͞ ̨N͏͏O̵͠҉T ͟͞M̀͏͞Í͝N͟͝D ̛̛M̕͘E. ͢͏GO̢̕ BA͏̸C̴̷̡K̨̛̀ ̡T͡Ò̸͟ ̸Ŗ̀ÈS̷̡TI̸N̴̵G.҉͘͝

Obligingly, you closed your eyes, and drifted off. The static and the hum of your own magic gently carried you away.

 

* * *

 

You woke with a start to find Toriel gently shaking your shoulder. "My child, you seem to have, what was the phrase?" She scrunched her face up for a moment. "Zoned out again. Maybe you should head to bed."

_I need answers,_ you signed insistently. Her eyes widened a bit at your intensity, which you felt a little bad about. The dream or whatever it was spooked you and made you all the more impatient. 

"I suppose you have waited long enough." Toriel sighed. "I will go check on Sans, and hopefully we can talk things through before early morning hits."

Thankfully, she left the room before Alphys helpfully pointed out that it was already 3 a.m. .


	22. Chapter 22

Sans shuffled back into the room looking exhausted, along with Papyrus. They got settled in, and a sort of awkward silence settled over the room. Nobody knew where to begin, apparently. So, you took matters into your own hands.

_How exactly did you guys find me? You mentioned something about finding my soul?_

Toriel seemed to choke a little on her drink. "W-well, my child..."

"You had been sick for a long while," Asgore said. "It was a slow decline. You had been in a human hospital for a while, but..." he trailed off.

"...they, uh, s-sent you home to be more c-comfortable." Alphys supplied, looking nervous as hell. "They had c-caught whatever you had t-too late to really do m-much good."

You took that in for a moment. _Did they know what I had?_

"No." Toriel answered, voice a bit stronger this time. She did hold you closer, though, and you let it happen. "Do you remember how monsters can just...fall down?" Your confusion must've been evident on your face, because she kept going. "Ah, right, your memory...before dying, monsters will sometimes "fall down", and enter something like a coma."

"It w-was like you fell down, b-but really slowly." Alphys added.

"You hadn't opened your eyes for a long time by the time it happened," Undyne said quietly. "Toriel brought you your breakfast one morning, and you were. Uh." She waved a hand around. "You, if you get my drift. You were floating there all red and soul-y."

"It was very, very pale," Toriel said, holding you as close as she could manage. "We didn't know what to do."

"a-at first." Alphys added, almost whispering.

 _I thought you said my..._ you took a moment and yawned. _My soul was bursting with determination when you found it. So that wasn't true?_  
  
"jeez, going for the jugular kiddo?" Sans made a sound close to a laugh."can't say I blame you though."

"W-we...we knew that if your soul s-stayed dim, it would shatter," Alphys mumbled. "So we had t-to...look for other sources."

_Other sources?_

"y'know kid, I can't say I'm not happy you don't remember that bit." Sans gestured to Alphys. "suffice to say, Al here did research on the stuff back in the day."

_How did..._

"We made deals with some humans." Undyne piped up. Toriel didn't even glare at her this time, a little lost in her own thoughts. "You aren't - weren't the only determined soul out there."

Asgore looked...really guilty, as did Alphys. Nobody would really meet your eyes. Even Papyrus looked uncomfortable.

 _I'm not...I'm not mad at you guys,_ you signed, a little unsure of yourself.

"You're still a child," Toriel hugged you close. "You shouldn't even know what death is, much less how you died."

To be fair, you weren't entirely happy that they'd lied to you. You were worried about what sort of deals they'd made, and wondered what research Alphys had done. If only you could remember. You gently untangled yourself from Toriel, and sunk into the couch a bit. Toriel looked a bit hurt, but you gently patted her shoulder.

You wondered when you'd actually get to rest.

"THIS CONVERSATION HAS GOTTEN RATHER UNCOMFORTABLE." Papyrus piped up, sweating a little. "FRISK, YOU'RE LOOKING TIRED! YOU SHOULD HEAD TO BED, SO THAT WE CAN RESUME TOMORROW!"

You waited for someone to crack a pun. Nobody did.

"It has been a rather eventful day or so," Asgore agreed. "This will give us time to, ah, process things." You knew by us, he meant you, though he didn't say so outright.

You simply nodded, and found yourself swept up into bony arms and carried away. You were too exhausted to say goodnight, both physically and mentally, and had fallen asleep before Papyrus had even made it up the stairs.

 

* * *

 

This time, when you dreamt, you found yourself in the living room again. The walls were festively decorated, and a tree wrapped with blinking lights and surrounded by presents sat in the corner. The air was warm, and filled with the smell of butterscotch-cinnamon pie.

You were sitting on the floor, right below Toriel. She was chatting animatedly with Sans, sounding the perkiest you could remember ever hearing her. The others were there too, laughing and drinking and generally having a good time.

Was this a memory? you wondered. You hoped so. This was really nice.

"HUMAN!" Papyrus was standing in front of you, holding out a flat gift wrapped in bone-printed paper. "I HAVE HEARD IT IS CUSTOMARY TO OPEN ONE GIFT ON GYFTMAS EVE, SO OF COURSE, YOU SHOULD OPEN MY GIFT TO YOU!"

You laughed, and reached out for the gift, tearing into it almost immediately. You were cheered on by the others as wrapping paper went flying. In the end, you found yourself holding a copy of something called 101 TOTALLY COOL PUZZLES THAT ARE EXTREMELY DIFFICULT FOR HUMAN PUZZLE ENTHUSIASTS NAMED FRISK, with Papyrus' face plastered on the front. There were puzzle pieces photoshopped onto his photoshopped biceps. It was obviously home-made.

You loved it, and said so. Papyrus' eyes sparkled - literally, if you hadn't known he was made of magic you woul've sworn there was glitter in his eyes. "WOWIE, REALLY? I'M GLAD YOU LIKE, FRISK! OF COURSE, THE GREAT PAPYRUS WOULD ONLY GIFT THE GREATEST GIFTS!"

With a nyeh-heh-heh, he bounded away again, almost immediately getting noogied by Undyne.

"you havin' a good time, kid?" You looked up to see Sans cuddled up to Toriel. You stuck your tongue out and made a disgusted face. "tori, I think that look means we gotta give each other cooties."

"Right you are, Sans." Toriel giggled, and leaned closer to him, making exaggerated lip smacking noises. You whipped your head back around to the sound of laughter behind you. Undyne was apparently giving Sans a big thumbs up and Alphys was as red as the fire roaring in the fireplace.

 

* * *

 

The scene changed, and the room got cold. You got the feeling time had passed, but how much? Nobody was in there with you, but you could hear soft voices. Slowly, you tiptoed your way towards them, hiding around the corner as you spotted Toriel, Sans, and Undyne sitting around the kitchen table. They looked beat, probably from a long day of festivity.

Toriel was saying something. "I just don't know if they are a good fit for the position," she said, worry evident in her voice. "They are not the best with people."

"I think the little punk should step down." Undyne said, ever the blunt one. Your eyes widened a bit. "Frisk obviously can't handle it."

"they kinda bring their work home with them, y'know?" Sans said, chugging a bottle of ketchup. "i love the kid, but it wears on ya."

"I wonder if perhaps..." Toriel sighed. "Perhaps this wasn't a good idea."

"'s not your fault the kid turned out to be useless, Tori." Sans offered.

You were shaking, and you could hear and feel the static burst into being, getting louder and louder. You welcomed it's comforting presence. They hadn't...they didn't think...they thought you were _useless?_

Eventually, the static washed everything else away, and you felt yourself in the nothing again. This time, you hoped you would stay there for a while.


	23. Chapter 23

The next morning, Papyrus woke damn near everyone up by cooking up a frenzy. Stacks of (spaghetti) pancakes and (spaghetti) waffles, along with (thankfully spaghetti-free) OJ found their way to the table, and eventually, so did you.

Your family looked just about as awake as you did, which was to say, not very. You felt like you could still sleep for ages, and the dreams and/or memories from last night wore you right out. The second one spooked you pretty badly, and while you'd convinced yourself it was a bad dream, you were still apprehensive.

Toriel picked at her waffle, and gently asked Papyrus to perhaps make the next batch without noodles. He seemed somewhat offended, but when he took a bite of his own work he hastily agreed. She followed him to the kitchen, presumably to make sure he didn't burn it down.

According to the laughter from the others, he'd gotten much better about it, but still.

"You look beat up, nerd." Undyne pointed her fork at you. "Still tired from yesterday?"

 _Kinda,_ you signed, yawning.

"spill it, kiddo." This morning, Sans actually had coffee, which was good. You didn't think your non-existant stomach could take a mug of ketchup. Undyne nodded and leveled her stare at you.

 _Well...I think I had a memory?_ you signed. _It was Christmas, and Papyrus gave me a book of puzzles. And you!_ You thrust your hands at Sans, looking betrayed.

Sans looked taken back. "me?"

You shook your finger acccusingly at him. _You kissed Mom!_

There was a beat, and then the room erupted with laughter. Asgore wasn't quite as cheerful as the others, but he still chuckled. You weren't exactly sure what they were laughing at, but you cheered up anyway.

"T-that was a couple years ago!" Alphys exclaimed. "After our f-first full year on the surface."

 _So, it was a memory?_ You signed excitedly.

"It seems so, Frisk." Asgore smiled at you. You couldn't help but smile back.

"one thing though." Sans fiddled with his spaghett-cake. "a memory like that couldnt've rattled your bones that badly." He gave you a pointed look. You really didn't want to bring up the second dream after such a great reaction to the first one. What if it was a memory, too?

 _Still tired from the last couple days,_ you said non-commitally, hoping he'd drop it. You can tell he didn't really believe you, but he let it drop. It was too early for conversations like that, anyway. Instead, he cracked another couple bone puns to get you giggling again, and everything seemed to settle down as Papyrus and Toriel brought out an edible breakfast.

"FRISK! WHILE YOU MIGHT STILL HAVE QUESTIONS, IT HAS BEEN A VERY LONG FEW DAYS!" Papyrus looked about ready to just sweep you up and carry you off, but seemed to think better of it. "I HAVE A GREAT MANY NEW PUZZLE BOOKS WE COULD WORK ON!"

"He wrote about half of 'em," Undyne laughed.

Asgore coughed awkwardly. "Undyne and I have some official business to take care of today. I'm sure you will all be well while we're gone?"

Toriel almost replied, but Papyrus interjected. "I WAS ONCE ALMOST IN THE ROYAL GUARD, YOU KNOW! I WILL KEEP FRISK SAFE AND SOUND FROM ANY NE'R DO WELLS." His cape billowed in the non-existant wind. To anyone who didn't know him, they would have called his bluff, but the others had seen him train. When he needed to, he could be a tank and a half. A tank that wouldn't actively hurt anyone, but still.

"We're gonna try to look up the folks from the other day," Undyne said, and you could tell she meant more than that. She didn't explain, though the others seemed to get it. "Make sure the punk doesn't make themselves worse, yeah?"

Soon after, they took off, promising to be back later that evening. They'd spoken with Toriel, Alphys, and Sans at length while Papryus cornered you with puzzles, games, and assorted japery. You could tell he'd been saving these up for a long, long while.

Honestly, you didn't think you could handle another serious conversation right now. It was true that you were rattled - hell, who wouldn't be? You had all this new information, and a new memory, but some things didn't add up, and others...well.

"FRISK! YOU SHOULD TRY THIS PUZZLE! I HAVE BEEN UNABLE TO SOLVE IT, BUT PERHAPS YOU CAN!" Papyrus gently shook your shoulder and you came back to reality. In front of you was something filled with jumbled letters and a rather upset looking bear...thing. 

"junior jumble. hardest puzzle in the biz." Sans called out. He and Toriel sat on the couch nearby, and were deep in conversation. Toriel looked worried, but she sort of always looked worried. Sans just looked tired.

You were going to say something back but...you were too tired, and things were going so nicely today. They looked exhausted too. Maybe later.

The static buzzed pleasantly in the background, and you handily defeated Papyrus at every puzzle - even the crossword, and that was no easy feat. You'd have to ask about the static later, too, but you were growing to like having it around.  
  
_E͏v̨eryt͏hing ̵i̶s pro̴g̢ressi͜ng ̸nìc͝el̢y̷,_ a voice whispered in the background, but you were too busy trying to beat Papyrus at a rousing game of go-fish to notice.


	24. Authors Note

Hey folks! Apologies for the non-update update, but I wanted to announce a couple of things! Nothing te̛rr̡ibl͢e, don't worry.  
  
The first is that I'm dealing with some chronic health issues at the moment that are flaring up like crazy, so I'm not actually entirely sure when I'll be able to upload the next chapter. Rest assured it'll be sometime before the end of the month, but it might take a little longer than usual this time around. Apologies for the wait, and thanks for sticking around guys! I'm still blown away people like this story so much.  
  
The next bit of business! There are several scenes coming up at the Monster Embassy and elsewhere that I could use some OC's for. Do you have an Undertale OC you'd like to see crack a one liner or apologize awkwardly for running into someone? Do you have an OC, period? Let me know in the comments, and I'll pick several to include in the story. They can be human or monster, though for the Embassy scene monster OCs will be given preference. If your OC is chosen, you'll be credited in the AN of the chapter they appear in. :D  
  
That's about it! Thanks again for sticking around this long, ya'll. _Tibia_ honest, it means a lot to me. 


	25. Chapter 25

"We'll just take my van," Asgore hummed, as he and Undyne stepped out the door. Undyne gave him a long stare before helpfully pointing out that he didn't really have a van right now. He also had a couple of farmers to pay off, most likely.

"We'll just take my car." Undyne said gruffly, pointing at a beater that had seen far, far better days. Asgore looked at it and felt something crawl up his back. Most likely fear. He'd seen Undyne drive before.

She drove much like she fought. Undyne always put in 200%, and drove 200% above any and all speed limits.

Undyne slapped him on the back and let out a guffaw. "What, you scared? I was the captain of the royal guard, don't you think I'll keep my king safe?" She all but dragged him to the passenger side and dove into the driver's seat.

"Undyne, I haven't been king for a while now, you know t-THAT!" With a screech they pulled out and careened down the road. He was going to be lucky if he survived this.

Asgore's cries for MERCY fell on deaf ears.

 

* * *

   
Asgore had stepped down from his official role as King a year or so after they left Mt. Ebott, for personal and political reasons. He was tired of leading, and honestly had been for a long, long while. When the human governments caught wind of what his plan had been to escape...well. It was let slide due to humanity shoving them under the mountain in the first place, but he was not so subtly urged to find other avenues to explore.

There were other monsters who were better at this sort of thing, anyway. Dealing with a world full of people was much different than ruling a small underground kingdom, that was for sure. He'd left a few trusted monsters in charge of various things, and left ruling in the hands of others for good. Undyne had stayed on as head of the royal guard for a while, but they weren't needed quite as much above ground. She opted instead to take a more laid back position, overseeing security for various official events.

"You're gonna meet Cheebs for the first time, I think," Undyne half-yelled over the din of traffic. "Bit of a greenhorn, but has a real strong sense of justice, y'know?"

Asgore, holding on to the "oh shit" handle and half frozen with fear, could only nod.

"She's sorta...excitable? But she's working on the crew that tracks anti-monster groups, and is dependable as all hell." They swerved to the right, and found themselves in a very quiet neighborhood, also known as Embassy Row. "I figure we can hit her up first and go from there."

They pulled up in front of a grand, large building, the Delta rune emblazoned on the front on wide purple banners. It was like something out of a fairy tale, if the fairy tale was about government buildings. Various monsters milled around in the front courtyard, as did a few humans. "Busy today," Asgore said, finally becoming unfrozen as Undyne pulled into a parking space. "There isn't an event going on, is there?"

"Not that I know of." Undyne squinted towards the embassy. "Ugh, this'll make things a little difficult."

"I may not be king anymore," Asgore said, mustering up all the royal air he could. "But I still know how to interact with my - our people. Should the need arise, I will mingle, while you...investigate."

Undyne flashed a toothy grin his way. "Knew you still had it in you. Let's go, then!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is short, but it was a good way to ease back into writing. :D Chapters will still be somewhat slow to come, but thanks for sticking with me, guys!
> 
> Cheebs belongs to Chibimun! We'll be seeing more of her in the next chapter, and the other OC's will be coming up soon as well.


	26. Chapter 26

The inside of the embassy was considerably calmer, though it was still full of activity. Monsters rushed to and fro, delivering paperwork, giving reports, and making sure the monsters who needed assistance got it. Several humans worked there too, but they were few and far between. Not out of any particular reason, but monsters preferred to handle their own business when they could.

Undyne made a beeline for an office a little out of the way, down a dark corridor. At a slightly dishevled desk sat an impish monster, fully engrossed in her work. She was surrounded by disorganized stacks of folders and paper, and several maps were pinned to the wall. One could call it organized chaos, really.

Asgore coughed politely and the imps head shot up, her face turning bright red. "Y-your highness! And Captain Undyne! What are you guys doing here?"

"Neither of us hold those titles anymore, squirt, you know that." Undyne's grin was friendly, though, and the imp calmed down slightly. "We have a favor to ask of ya, Cheebs."

"A-anything for you! I mean you guys! What do you need?" Cheebs asked, obviously flustered.

"Do you have a recent report on the hate groups?" Undyne asked. "Like, detailed."

"Uh, nothing super detailed right now, but give me..." Cheebs glanced at the clock. "An hour? I'll get with the others and get something drawn up. Everything okay?"

"It will be." Asgore said simply, and Cheebs took the hint. She got to work immediately, sorting through the mess of paperwork at a rate that surprised the both of them. As they walked away, Undyne laughed as quietly as she could.

"Excitable, but real dedicated when it comes down to it. Anyway..." Undyne surveyed the lobby. "What do you want to do until she's done?"

"UNDYNE!" Came a shout, and before they knew it a rather gangly yellow monster had faceplanted right in front of them. With a shake, they popped right back up, revealing the grinning face of Monster Kid. "Haven't seen you lately! Or you, your - uh, Asgore! What's up?"

"We're just taking care of some business, MK." Asgore said warmly. "How is your family?"

"Fine! I'm going to high school next year!" MK said proudly. "My sister is graduating, too!" They looked around Undyne and Asgore, searching for something. "Frisk with you guys? I haven't seen them in ages!"

"Uh." Undyne said eloquently. They probably should have known someone would ask, she thought.

"They are still ill, I'm afraid, but they will be on the mend soon," Asgore assured MK. MK didn't look completely satisfied with the answer, but shrugged and let it go anyway.

"I gotta go, I'm writing a report on monster politics! See you guys later! Tell Frisk I said hi!" With that, MK took off, but not before falling flat on their face one last time.

"I feel we should have thought about what to say earlier," Asgore murmered. "We've been a little pre-occupied lately."

Undyne sighed. "Nghh, great, another big family conversation we get to have."  
  


* * *

  
  
Cheebs handed over a rather large stack of papers. "There's actually not much activity around here lately, but I included all I could about the local and close groups." Her brow furrowed. "Are you coming back to security soon? We could use the help."

"Uh, yeah." Undyne said, distracted, as she flipped through the reports. "Damn, Cheebs, this is a lot of info."

"I don't think you're gonna find much of use though," Cheebs said apologetically. "I don't know what you guys are looking for, but as quiet as it's been, it might not be the lead you're looking for."

"We appreciate the help anyway, Cheebs." Asgore said warmly. "Thank you."

"No problem! If uh, you guys don't mind, I've got work to do." Cheebs gestured to the mess around her. With a couple goodbyes and a furtive glance at Undyne's bicep that Cheebs tried to sneak, they left with a pile of reports in hand.

As they walked to the car, Undyne let out a groan of frustration. "We're gonna have to come up with a better story about Frisk, or go back to work, or _something_."

"We will figure that out later." Asgore steeled himself as he got back into Undyne's beater. "For now, let us head back home."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cheebs belongs to Chibimun! I hope I did them justice. Thanks for all the bookmarks/hits/kudos/comments/everything, ya'll.
> 
> I did want to explain the family thing - with all they've been through, I think they would have gotten as close as any other family. Found families can be pretty great. :)


	27. Chapter 27

You were twenty games of go-fish, five games of uno, three games of chess, a couple games of solitaire...somehow, and a multitude of board games in with Papyrus and you were pretty done. Your head hurt, the pounding making you feel like your skull would crack. Papyrus seemed to notice, and without too much fuss let you go hang out on the couch again, your head sinking into the cushions.

"F-frisk?" You opened one eye to Alphys standing over you, an odd instrument in hand and a reassuring smile on her face. "We thought it m-might be a good idea to check you over, since you aren't f-feeling well."

You shrugged, and she took that as a "yes." Alphys spent a while checking over you, the instrument beeping every now and then, and "tsks" coming from her every so often, though you couldn't tell if it was annoyance or worry.

Given that one memory? Could be either.

"Your magic s-still isn't regulating that well. W-why don't you go lay down for a while?" She must have been able to read your expression, because she added, "I k-know, I know, but it's the best way for your b-body to heal itself."

"DON'T FRET, FRISK!" Came a shout from the kitchen. "WHEN YOU AWAKEN, YOU CAN HAVE SOME OF MY SPECIAL MAGICAL SPAGHETTI!"

"H-he's, he's adding healing magic." Alphys explained with a grin.

You propped yourself up a bit. _How long until I feel better?_ You asked. _Or maybe a little stable?_

"W-well...you haven't b-been awake for too long, and we uh." Alphys searched for the right words. "We'll just have to s-see. This is sorta...an unusual s-situation. So."

She didn't know. A little grumpy at that, you just shrugged and made your way upstairs, back to your room. Your head was _killing_ you.

 

* * *

 

When you woke up again, fresh from a deep dreamless sleep, you were back on the couch. Or, well, maybe? You were wrapped up in the blankets from your bed, but you were stretched out on the family couch. Above you, there was a tall, mishappen skeleton who you only vaguely remembered. They seemed to notice you were awake, and smiled as best they could.

A̶H,̷ ̸Y̨O̢U ͏A̢R͟E ͜AWA̸K̸E,͟ F̵RIS̴K.̸ ̢H̸E͡LL̶O̴.

You tried to lift your hands to sign, but found that you were too tired to do so. All you could really do was relax into the blankets, and the static growing louder around you did nothing but encourage that.

SOO̢N Y͝OU'̡LL REM͜EMBER ̸MO̡R̵E,̴ ̵C͘ḨI͟LD̵. The skeleton did something with his hands, and there was...something...oozing out beneath him. I ͞AM͡ SO͡RR̨Y ͜THAT ͡NO҉T A͝LĹ YOƯR ́MEMORI̶ĘS̸ W̧ERE ̢P̷LEĄSA͜NT́.̷

They knew?

M̵Y̡ POOR ́C͡H͜I͞LD.͠ ̧S͏O͞ON͘ Y͜O͠U̢ ͘WĮL̛L͠ ̛RE͞M͜E͟MBER ͢ḾORÉ,̡ AN͡D͞ WE C͠A҉N ҉S̷PEĄK͠ ҉A̧T͘ ͞LENGT̷Ḩ.͏ ̴U̷N҉TIL T͠HEN̷,̡ PL͏EASE, ҉REST҉.̡ REST ̧SO T͏HAT̸ Y҉ÒU M͟A͜Y͡ ̨H̷EA҉L. There was that misshapen smile again, but you found yourself jolted awake again by a massive pain splitting your skull. You were back in your room, tangled up in the blankets, and everything just made the pain worse.

Oh, right. That headache.

You stumbled your way to the restroom, hoping to find some kind of monster candy or something that would help. The medicine cabinet was right behind the mirror, so you reached out to open it up.

And stopped.

Your face was cracking. There were several hairline fractures, going up from one eye, and down from the other. The one going down seemed a touch wider, and expanded a little before your eyes before stopping. Numb, you stared into the mirror as the pain began to fade ever so slightly.

This was all too much. What was happening to you? Not even the static was soothing this time, as you sank to the floor and began to wordlessly sob. You just wanted your old life back, though you could barely remember it. Not...not whatever this was.

Toriel found you later, curled up in a ball in the corner, surrounded by small sparks of magic. As she carried you back to bed, she saw the dried tears on your face, but made no mention of the cracks. Instead, she sat beside you and hummed, making sure you were comfortable and comforted as best she could. Slowly your magic faded away again, and you faded back into a dreamless, if fitful, sleep.

Later, when you had the strength to look in a mirror again, your face was whole and unfractured. Good as new.


	28. Chapter 28

That night, you dreamt, but your dreams were disjointed. You felt a little better thanks to the healing magic, surprisingly edible pasta, and some time spent with family, but you felt...unsettled, still. The others noticed, but left you to it.

Figured.

The first dream had you in a field of golden flowers, all with the face of Flowey. None of them spoke to you. They simply swayed in the breeze, and it was oddly peaceful. You just stood there for a bit, taking it all in.

Then the scene changed, and you were back home. This time you were working on some sort of assignment, and Papyrus was helping you figure out the word problems you were working on. Nothing too exciting happened, but it was nice, too.

The next one wasn't. You were in a lab of some sort, thrown into a glass container. You couldn't really see anything out of it, just the blurred faces of people. You thought you heard crying.

The scene changed and you were lying on the floor, covered in vines, a skeleton once more. You tried to move, but nothing happened. You tried to sign, but you couldn't. You desperately hoped someone would come find you, come get you.

But nobody came.

The next dream threw you back into your house, this time in the middle of the night. You could hear Toriel and Sans murmuring to each other, and Papyrus was asleep on the couch. You could make out the words "home" and "leave" and "replacement", but try as you might, you couldn't make out the rest. The static was too loud.

The static! You tilted your head and tried to focus on that instead, and the world around you faded away. You could hear someone else talking in the static, but their voice was too far away to make out.

W͡E'̡R͏Ę ͢A͟LM̵OST͠ ̵REA͡DY͝, C͘HILD.͘ YOU'R͠E͡ ALMƠS͜T ͜T͏HERE.̶

 

* * *

 

A few weeks passed. Asgore headed back to his own house, along with Undyne and Alphys. They still had no idea who had tailed you guys, but Asgore still worked with Undyne to try and figure it all out, when they had the time. They had returned to work, regrettably, but it did help the questions die down. You were still asked after, but with your family back in public, they assumed it wasn't as dire.

Monsters could be a little too trusting, sometimes.

Toriel refused to leave you alone, and Sans took an indefinite leave from the lab. Papyrus wanted to quit his job at Muffetts, but with some convincing he decided to just dial it back to part-time. He brought you treats nearly every day from Muffett herself, usually mixed with some sort of healing magic.

You asked once if she knew anything about what was going on. Papyrus vehemently shook his head, while Toriel just looked thoughtful. She knew you were sick, Papyrus explained, but nothing more.

Even if the treats had more magic than a human could normally handle.

As for you, you fell into a bit of a depressed rut. You couldn't go outside, obviously. You were getting snippets of memory each night, but they didn't add up to much. Some of them were really pleasant memories with your family, but others....

You had nightmares, frankly. Of the underground, of finding your family talking about leaving you behind, about how you were more trouble than you were worth. Of each of your family members, and more, attempting to take your life.

It made you wary of the others, but you tried to hide it. They obviously cared for you, and loved you. Eventually you'd get more memories, right? It was all just a long process, and you'd get there eventually.

"kid? you with us?" You shook your head and saw Sans sitting next to you on the couch. "welcome back, frisk. so, do you want to watch another mettaton movie, or something else?"

_Something else. Please,_ you begged. Sans eyes widen a little, looking at something a bit above you, but quickly wiped the look off his face.

"sure, kiddo. got anything in mind?" You thought for a minute, and pointed out some science documentary sitting on the shelf.

_I can't go outside right now, but I want to see the stars,_ you explained. Sans nodded, and went to go pick it up.

"kid, before I pop that in, mind if I ask you a question?" Sans pointed above you, and you looked up, seeing the last fading wisps of your magic. Confused, you looked back at him, only to see the lights in his eyes completely vanish.

"mind tellin' me where you learned to **speak in hands**?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ALL ABOARD THE ANGST TRAIN TOOT TOOT
> 
> Well. Not really angst, but we're getting into the more plot-heavy bits. As a little hint, pay attention to when/where Frisks magic tends to flare up.


	29. Chapter 29

You just sort of stared at him. What was he talking about? Your signing?

"don't play dumb with me, kiddo. where'd you learn to make those symbols?" You were reminded of a nightmare from the other night - Sans had been facing you down in a cold, golden hallway. He had been giving you the same look as he was right now.

_What are you talking about?_ You signed desperately. You were honestly a little scared, and a lot frustrated.

"really? do you think that a person can just up and learn a dead language outta nowhere?" Sans still stared you down, but he looked...put off. Somewhere in the background you could hear Toriel coming, humming something.

_Do you mean my magic? Why are you so paranoid of my magic?_ You huffed, finally letting some of your frustration show. _You jump down my throat every time something happens - I know as much as you do!_

Sans' eyes widen again, just slightly. "kiddo, your eye lights are gone..."

_Maybe because I'm tired of you! I'm just tired of...you guys don't even..._

In retrospect, this situation shouldn't have escalated. It shouldn't have blown up. You were depressed, yes, but not really all that angry. Still, something deep and primal rose up within you. You weren't just annoyed, you were the very definition of anger. The nightmares, the memories, all flashed through your head. The static grew louder and louder as the air began to spark.

"oh shit - frisk, buddy, look, i'm sorry, i - " Sans tried to come near you, but was thrown back into the wall. Several photos crashed to the ground, the glass shattering across the floor. Toriel still wasn't anywhere to be seen.

_Do you know what else? I remember those things you guys said! I remember the talks you guys had about getting rid of me! I remember you all trying to kill me, and then acting like it never happened!_ If you could shout, you would, but instead the air just grew thicker with angry red magic.

"frisk, if you remember us trying to - wait." Sans' face scrunched up. "getting rid of you? kiddo, you know we'd never - " He tried to stand up and make his way over to you agian, but you held him down. How, you didn't know, but this time you weren't going to let him explode at you again.

"My child? Sans? What's going on?"

In retrospect, it never should have happened.

In retrospect, you wished you had run to Toriel's side when a deep, red wound appeared on her cheek. You should have asked if she was okay, and apologized, rather than watch her stunned face as she reached up to feel her wound. You hadn't even realized she had made it into the room.

Somewhere, in the static, you felt a welcoming prescence. While Sans shouted something at you, and Toriel tried to figure out what just happened, you leaned into the static instead.

In retrospect, you shouldn't have done that. However, you did, and all that was left of you in the house was a sparking remnant of angry, desperate magic, and the sound of cracking bone. 


	30. Chapter 30

Alpys and Undyne were in the middle of a marathon of some anime featuring a short, angry kid and a tall, metal sweetheart. Undyne, of course, loved the short guy, while Alphys found herself feeling bad for the taller, yet younger brother. She'd made mistakes just like they had, so it hit a little close to home. They loved the show, though.

A trombone belted out, jolting them out of their reverie, and Alphys noticed Sans was giving her a call. Undyne was busy yelling at the short kid that he should fight harder, so Alphys snuck away and quietly answered.

"H-hello! Is, uh, is everything okay?" Alphys asked quietly.

"frisk is gone." Sans' voice was shakier than Alphys had ever heard it, even when they were still trapped underground. "al, they spoke...they spoke in hands before they left."

"O-oh. Oh no." Alphys stuttered. "Where'd F-frisk go? W-we need to -"

"listen, i don't really have the time for a full convo right now, sorry. i fucked up, the kids 'ported off to god knows where, and Toriel is in hysterics. i could use a hand." Alphys could almost hear the cringe. "for once, that wasn't intentional."

"R-right, I'll uh, I'll get Undyne and c-come over."

"bring the schematics with you." The phone went dead.

 

* * *

 

A͝H, ̀CH̴I͢LD, YO̵U͞ A̛RE R҉E҉ADY ̕A̵T͟ L̢ÁST̵.̀  
͟  
I͡'̵M ͏S͞UR̸E͝ ̢Y̶OU A͜RE ̀V̵E͜R̢Y C̷ON̵FUS͘EḐ,͘ ͘A͠N̶D ҉V̡E͘R͘Y͜ H̴ŲRT.̡ ́I AM̵ V̕ER͟Y SOR͡ŔY FO̕R͟ ̶W̨H͡A̸T́ YOU͜ ̵H̶AVE̕ ́BEEN͠ ̛TH͡RO͢U͟GH.̶ ͘FO͞R̷ WH͡A҉T́ THE̶Y H͜AVE PUT YOU̴ TH̨R͘O͞U̶GH͠.̢  
I͏ ̵D̶ID̕ ̢M̴Y ̵B̶EST TO͡ HEL̶P̕ YOU͝ R̵E͏M͘EM̷B́ER̀,̸ BUT͏ I̷ ŖE͟ĢR̨E̛T ͏LETT̵IN͢G͜ Y̧O͢U GE̢T͏ H͟UR̨T͘ ̀L͜IK͢E҉ ŢH͢AT̶.̛ YOU D̷E͢SER̨V͢E̷ R̵E͘ST.҉ ҉YO̴U̕ ͞D́EŚE̴R͜VE̵ ͏A B̧REAK̷. ͟Y͘OU̶ HELPED EVE͟R͏YOǸE ͟EL̢SE, ̷S̡Ǫ ͞YÒU DESE҉RV̀E͏ S̴OME̛ ̵HE͢L͟P, ͟D̕ON'T ̶YOÙ ̢TH̴I̷ŃK̷?  
  
̷YES͏.̧ ́I̷ W̨ILL̸ HEL҉P͟ YOU,͜ ̷A͠ND TOGE̷T͏HĘR͡ ͘W҉E̵ W͠I̧L̶L ҉MAK̛E̷ ͝SUR͢E TH̕AT̡ ̀Y̧O̡Ù ̵DON'T G̸ȨT̛ ̶H͢U͢RT͏ E҉VE͘R AGA͜I̛N.͢ ͠J̷U͜S̵T G͏RASP͜ MY HA͝ND͝,̕ CHI̸L͡D́,̢ ̶AN̵D̨ ̢ŢOG͞E͡T͘ḨER ̕ẀE ̨WIL͟L͡ ̷MA͟K̶E SƯR͟E YO̷U ̷H͢EA͠L AN̕D ́R͟EA̢CH͏ Y̧O̕UR̸ F̷U͏L͘L͞ES̕T ͝P͏OT͟EN̷T̴IAL͝.͝  
̕  
W͏H̵A͜T ̡WA̡S̴ TH̴A̵T?̢ ỲO̧U̡ ҉WO̷UL͠D ̛L̀I̶KE҉ TO S̷E̕E T̵H̵E͝ STA̴ŖS?  
͟  
T͡A͠KE M͜Y ͟HA̕ND̨, ̶AND ͝I A̡S͠S̛U̡ŔE͢ ̶YOU̕,̶ ͠YO̷Ù W͜IĻL̡ B͞E͜ T̡H̷E͝ ̧B̶ŔIG̵H̴TÉS̨T ́ST̶AR̢ O̡F͞ THEM͢ ALĹ.̴  
  
TH̷IS͘ ̀W̷IĻL ͘H҉U̶R͝T̀ ̶OŅL͘Y͜ SL͟IGH̴T͜L͡Y,͠ BU̵T͢ ̴I͜ ẀIL͘L͝ ̵BĘ ̡T̸HER̀E҉ ͏FÓR̷ Y̸O̴Ú.́ ͠I W͘ON'T T͡R͢Y AND͏ HU̵RT̴ ͜YO̡U LIKE T͏HEY DI҉D̕,̛ DON'T͏ FR̛E͜T͏. T̢O͡GE̴THE͡R̶ ̸W͘E WI̸LL̸ M͡AKE SU͡ŖE NO̕B͟O̸D͏Ỳ ̕E̶VȨR HU͡R̢TS ͜YO͟U ĄGĄÍN̷.̵  
  
̡DO̢N'̛T̨ ̀F͏R̀ET͏,̶ POO͏R̵ C͡HI̸L͜D. Y̶OU͏ ̀WON̴'̷T ̡GO ͢THR͢OUGH̶ ̀T̛H͜IS͘ ALƠN͞E.̕

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Won't you shake a poor sinners hand?_
> 
> Part dos of shit getting real! The next chapter will take a bit longer, and will be a lot longer, but I got too excited about this one.


	31. Chapter 31

It was a late night at Grillby's. Since they'd made it to the surface, Grillby had made something of a name for himself - people loved the cozy atmosphere his bars provided. He still insisted on working, switching between locations every other shift or so. It was a comfortable arrangement, and not too different from his old routine.

One thing Grillby insisted on was hiring those who had trouble fitting in elsewhere. This included the more...unconventional monsters, such as the water elemental currently wiping down tables. In the back, a cheerful rat monster with four heads was grilling, and a waitress shaped something like a paper lantern floated in between tables, taking orders and chatting with the regulars.

Grillby supposed he couldn't really blame humans, but it still stung a bit. Things were going fairly well, all things considered, but any monster a little too out of the ordinary (for humans, anyway) still had a hard time finding work. Even the more open minded humans still acted a little...odd.

Tonight was going well enough. They weren't packed, but they were busy enough. This location was right on the edge of the neighborhood many monsters moved to after the barrier broke, and it got it's fair share of monster and human regulars alike. At first it had been something of a novelty to the humans, but they quickly learned it wasn't kosher to point and gawk at his patrons.

There was a slumped over monster in a grey hoodie mumbling into their drink on the far side of the bar. If he hadn't have known better, he would have thought it was Sans. They were too tall though, and their voice was far too high, from what he could tell.

"...time to go home." He said, setting down a glass of seltzer and their tab. They just sat there, still mumbling.

"..." Grillby was used to people like this. Unfortunately. "...you're being cut off."

There was a high pitched sort of noise - it was too harsh to be a laugh, but too high to be a groan. "o̢ļ̬͈͇͉̘D̷͈͖͖ ̱̩͓̱̭͓̟͜f̝̪̟r͍i̩͈̰Ḛ̱n̗̘̞̦̞̱d̬̞͙̣͇̝.̹͇̱̗͈.̳.̨͉̥͎" they mumbled, voice raspy, and sounding broken. "d͉̞̲̟̭̥͟O̸̬̠̮̮̯͍ ̹̲y̮̹̝̦̳͔͞ǫ̟̹͈͇ͅU̳̞͍ ͇̼͚re͏͉̜̪̯ͅa̫̤̻͖̼̩͠l̦͇͓̜̥̀ͅl̮̲̖͚̫̬͎͡y̮͔͙͉͈͉̕ ̵͙̠N̷̦̜͇̯o̫ṯ͖̙́ ̹̰͖͚͉͔̰r̙̠-̰͕͕̺̲͟ͅͅR͎͔̤͙̼̹͓e͕c̨͓̪̫͉̟o̷̬g̡͇N҉͕̘i̬̟͈z͓̙̤̯͟e̼̼̼̠ ̛̰̮̫̪̻͍͓ú̻͕s?҉̻̠̜͈͖̮"

"...please pay your tab and go." Grillby hit a bell under the counter to let the monster in the back know he might need backup.

The monster lifted their head, only slightly, but it caused Grillby to jump back a step. Their face was mangled, just shards of bone melting together and breaking apart, forming a mockery of a face. It also looked oddly familiar. "W̵̟̘̯̭̤̗é̖̞̮͔ ͎̹̩̤̹͓̤́s̛u͢p͙̦̭pÒ̤̟s͓͕̣͚e͚͕͙͔̞̞ ̡̹̹͚̜w̷̠͉͓E̯͙̮ c̴A̹͖͔̮̣͞n̦̺̹̻͈n͈O͓̼͠T̟͈̦͖̫̩͠ ̴͚̹͍͔b͙͔̝l͢Ạ̭͍M͙̭͍E̢ ͖y̟̝̲̘̺̝o̥̣̳u̮̠̦͠.͍͍.̟̮̦̖͈̯ͅ.̲" it let out one of those awful noises again.

There was a rending sound, and they were gone, in a haze of pale red magic. On their tab were a few old coins, which Grillby cautiously inspected. They weren't human coins, that was for certain.

They were worn, old monster coins, the likes Grillby hadn't seen since he was a young flame.

 

* * *

 

 

"Ahuhuhu, enjoy your treats!" Muffet left behind a couple giving dopey smiles to each other and headed to the back of her bakery, waving hello to Papyrus as she went. It was a busy day, and they hardly had time to breathe, let alone chat. She made a note to herself to send a few extra croissants home with him, to help make up for it. They'd be packed with healing magic, of course.

She didn't need her spies to tell her that something was up, though they certainly helped. It's not that she was going to use the information against her former queen - on the contrary, she simply made it her business to keep tabs on those she cared about. Muffett had to admit, she was shocked when she found out the truth behind your illness, but she did all she could to help.

It was simply her way of paying you back. Plus, she had to admit, her curiousity was piqued.

The door rang, and Muffett swivled back around, giving a smile and a "what can you do?" shrug with a few of her arms to Papyrus as she passed. He gave her a wave, then turned back to the batter he was whipping up as she delicately stepped back out into the fray. The dopey couple in love was long gone. A tallish figure in a grey hoodie was slumped over her display case, twitching. Her mouth curled up in distaste, but she quickly hid it and flashed a smile at him.

"Hello, can I help you?" She asked. Might as well see if she could get a sale out of it, right?

They looked up, and it took all Muffett had not to crawl up the wall behind her. It looked wrong. It wasn't human, but it sure as hell wasn't any monster she knew of. It's face melted and broke apart with audible cracks, Her fangs came of their own violition.

"M̴̞̬̺̘̩̪u͏͇̫̼̤f͈̘͍f̠̲̱̳̬͔ͅE̻̭̳̣̗̱͉Ṭ͓̲̲.̢̳̩̝̰.̦̲̩.͉̼͔̗̣͈̼͝" There was a screech in the air, and the sadness behind it was clear as day. "P͚̖̪͘a̱͍̘̘̻͟p̛̣̱̖̲ͅ-҉pa̖p̼͍yR̙͚̹̤̱̙͡Ṷ̲̠͜S̯̦.͚͠ͅ.͚̞̖̲̙͔͠.͕̜͍̝͈͡"

There was a rending sound, as if time and space was tearing at the seams, and the...the thing was gone.

After a while of just standing there and blinking, she flipped the sign outside to close and peeked into the back. "Papyrus, dearie?" she said, as calmly as she could, "We're closing early today."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hokay, so I'm not going to promise that the following chapters will all come so quickly - I'm still kinda bleh - but I've been looking forward to this arc for _ages_. :D
> 
> Also! The water elemental, Sabrina, belongs to XxSansxX!


	32. Chapter 32

Papyrus wasn't worried. He was too great to be worried.

He knew the others thought him naive, maybe a little slow on the uptake. And he was, he was great enough to be able to admit that to himself. He wasn't stupid, though.

First, Muffet had ushered him out of the bakery far earlier than usual, and with enough croissants to feed the house for ages. She was generous, but not usually this generous. She'd looked really frazzled, and locked up as soon as he got out the door. She didn't even give her customary giggle as he left.

Then, he'd called Sans to let him know, and Sans sounded like something terrible had happened. He was short and curt, and refused to explain why. He just said he'd explain when Papyrus got home, and that everyone else would be there.

He'd gotten a call from Asgore asking him to hurry. He got a text from Undyne saying she was on her way over. None of the usual jokes that had slowly started to creep back into their lives. Nada.

Papyrus was indeed great and not at all worried, but he was spooked. His gangly legs carried him home as fast as they could.

 

* * *

 

You weren't in the nothing, this time. You were on that couch, in a featureless room. It was softly lit, but bare save for you. Some sort of off-key music played in the background, very dimly. It didn't sound bad, but it was odd. Uplifting at some points, unsettling at others.

You couldn't quite remember how you got here. It was probably a dream, you reasoned. Memories floated into your serene mind, and you let them wash over you.

For the first time in ages, you remembered everything with crystal clarity. It was as if a movie was playing through your head, and you were content to simply watch as your memories re-asserted themselves.

You fell. Toriel saved you from Flowey. You met the skeleton brothers. You met Undyne, and Alphys, and Asgore, and most of the wonderful monster population. You were surrounded by people who loved and cared for you, for the first time in your short life. You weren't going to be alone anymore.

And after, after you'd defeated Flowey and broken the barrier, things hadn't gone well. Wait a moment... _there was something else, something_ -

**Th̷͠i͜͟͡n͝g̡̨s̕͟.̧ ͜H͏̷̧a̸d̢n̵'͜͠t͏͟.̨͜͝ Go͠͝n̵ȩ͝͡.͟ ̀͡Ẁ̴̧ę͘ļl͜͜͝.͟͢ ͜Ha͢d̨̨.̸̶͝ ̛T҉h̛͝è̀y̵͘?̷**

No. No, after breaking the barrier, though the details were...fuzzy...the monsters seemed to leave that warmth and love behind them, bit by bit. They grew tired of your anxiety, grew tired of your flinching when another human drew near. They grew tired of your nightmares. They grew tired of always, always having to help you. After all, you'd broken them out, so why couldn't you seem to support yourself in the slightest?

You kept overhearing conversations about maybe sending you off to a human boarding school, or perhaps back to your old parents. This scared the hell out of you, of course, but what else could you do? You were a kid. You just missed the warmth in their eyes, the kindess in their embrace. All that was left was a slight tolerance.

You remembered the night you ate those buttercups. You... _someone_...you had found a website detailing how they could make you sick, but how to keep from overdosing. You just wanted them to care for you again. Was it selfish? Yes, but a little selfishness hadn't gotten in the way of your determination before, had it?

And for a short while, it was like you were all back underground. Papyrus played puzzles with you, Sans read to you, Toriel spent each day by your side. Still, you knew it had been a relief for them all when you passed.

Toriel hadn't lost another child. It wasn't like she wasn't planning on getting rid of you anyway.

And then...

Your head hurt. There was a space in your memory that felt like a gaping void. Your memories came to a halt and you curled yourself into the couch, trying to will the pain away.

 

* * *

 

"S-so there's no telling wh-where...?" Alphys asked, struggling to get the words out.  
  
"i can't detect 'em anywhere. their magic isn't popping up anywhere." Sans was slumped on the couch. "i fucked up, al, I really - "

"Sans, no offense, but you can feel sorry for yourself later, okay?" Undyne said, not unkindly. "Right now we'll get the details sorted and look for the little punk. You can sort your feelings once they're home. Okay?"

"BROTHER? TODAY HAS BEEN ODD!" The front door shut, and Sans stiffened. "I KNOW YOU ARE KEEPING SOMETHING FROM ME, AND WORK WAS WEIRD, AND I GOT SOME WEIRD TEXTS AND - "

Papyrus walked in to find Undyne, Sans, and Alphys sitting in the dimly lit living room. Toriel wasn't anywhere to be found, and neither was Asgore. Everyone looked tired terrified at the same time. Papyrus knew his friends and brother - oh sure, there were faint smiles, but they didn't reach their eyes.

There was something missing. He couldn't see you. He couldn't sense your soul anywhere.

"Friends. Brother." He said quietly, this time. "Where is Frisk?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _*finger guns*_ The unreliable narrator tag made a comeback, folks, make note of it.
> 
> Fun tidbit: [This](https://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=annotation_2001018917&feature=iv&src_vid=FPSgfQGSyUA&v=KGfJYHZCNyU) is the song I was listening to while writing this! I usually listen to the theme in some form when writing his bits. True facts, I tried to listen to the Genocide soundtrack to get in the mood and I got too spooked. I'm a weenie.


	33. Chapter 33

It was...odd, feeling again.

This form was unstable, but getting better and better at holding itself together. None of the problems those wretched abomonations his successor had run into had cropped up. He supposed he couldn't blame her - she'd had no access to his notes or his research, and floundered without his guidance.

He'd fix that, though.

The child was sleeping. It was for the best. They hadn't quite taken to the new memories as of yet, but it was only a matter of time. When they did, they would truely come together, and they would be unstoppable.

He wasn't a despot, and he doubted the child would let them wage war. No, all he wanted was his life back, and if he had to co-opt the life of this anomaly to do so, so be it. He didn't regret what he had done, and he had walled off his feelings long ago. He still kept the child aware, though.

It was the least he could do. He may be using the child to crawl back out of the void, but the child would be able to see and feel the fruits of their labor.  
  
When Gaster allowed it, anyway. 

He hadn't meant to go to Muffets. He hadn't known the spider, but the child did. He could feel the child calling out, their soul threatening to split. As quickly as he could, Gaster had wrested control back and got them out of there. That wouldn't do.

He doubted she realized what was happening, but he could take no chances.

The child was stirring, and Gaster could feel their magic rush up, threatening to overtake him. As easy as breathing, he tamped it back down, and the child fell back asleep. Even as a monster, the anomaly was determined.

There was a twinge to the air, a soft howl, and Gaster grimaced. They were attempting to find the child. He couldn't risk being found at this stage - maybe once they were both truly fused, they could take anyone on, but right now the bond was too fragile. They couldn't even keep - he couldn't even keep his face together for too long, let alone any sort of defense or attack.

"HEY PUNK? IS THAT YOU?" A loud, brash voice echoed throughout the alley. "WE AREN'T MAD, JUST COME OUT!"

Good grief, they were already onto him/you/them, despite everything he'd done to hide your/his tracks.  He knew they loved you dearly, but to find them this fast? Find you - him this fast? That was something else. He almost regretted taking that away from you as he tore his way though space and the void to another hiding spot, leaving the brash voice behind.

The key word here was "almost."

 

* * *

 

"thanks, undyne. keep in touch." Sans hung up the phone and turned back to the table, facing Alphys and Toriel. "she says they caught a whiff of the kid on the edge of town, but they popped away before she could find 'em."

Toriel was quiet, sipping her tea and glancing at the schematics strewn about on the table.

"at least we know the kid is still hangin' around town," Sans supplied, hoping Toriel would at least look at him. She didn't. Gods, did he want to see her at least look at something again, actually look at something, instead of through it  
.  
Toriel was a strong, strong woman. She had been through hell and back. She was capable of taking on anything - but this? This had shaken her. So while she went through her routine, took care of the house, and helped search for Frisk, she hadn't said a word. She kept to herself, and only herself.

It had been about a week since you'd vanished. They hadn't made any sort of headway with the schematics - Sans was hoping he could pinpoint something that had maybe gone sideways with it. He and Alphys had a furious whispered conversation about the possibility of _him_ being involved, but how could he?

Sans didn't know, but to be frank, he'd seen far more impossible things happen.

He tried not to let himself think of the worst case scenario. You'd been through a lot lately, and he hadn't helped. It wasn't all him, though - what was up with you thinking they'd get rid of you? They would never, ever send you away, and they were all pretty flabbergasted when he'd brought that up to the rest of the group.

Sans shook his head. "welp. I'm goin' to go to Grillby's, look for the kid some more. you guys want anything?" He needed to get out of the house, being holed up wasn't helping. Alphys shook her head no, and Toriel didn't respond.

Still, he stood up and shuffled over to her, planting a skeleton kiss on her forhead. "we'll find 'em Tori. we'll get them home," he whispered, staying there for a moment.

Almost inaudibly, she muttered, "Do you promise?"


	34. Chapter 34

CHILD?

You stirred a little from your fitful sleep.

CHILD, I KNOW THIS IS DIFFICULT TO DEAL WITH, BUT IT REALLY IS FOR THE BEST.

Sans?

FRISK, REMEMBER THE DEAL WE MADE?

You frowned. Sans didn't make deals, did he?

ARE YOU...OF COURSE. YOU MUST BE HAVING SOME DIFFICULTIES. ONE MOMENT.

The world was brought into sharp relief as your eyes flew open. You were in a barren wooden room, and it was freezing. It didn't affect you quite so bad though...was it because you were a monster now?

A SKELETON HAS NO REAL NEED FOR TEMPERATURE SENSITIVITIES.

...what?

SKELETONS DO NOT NEED TO FEEL HOT OR COLD, UNLESS THEY ARE TIRED. WE ARE BOTH VERY WORN, SO IT IS AFFECTING US MORE THAN NORMAL.

Us?

DO YOU REMEMBER THE LAB? THE REAL ONE, NOT THE HOVEL.

The...oh, yes, yes you did. It was scary down there...right? Right, it'd been pretty frightening, with the amalgamates, and Alphys had almost let you get eaten...before...

DO NOT WORRY TOO MUCH ON IT NOW, FRISK. WHAT WE ARE NOW, THE DEAL WE MADE. WE ARE SIMILAR.

He must have sensed your fear and anxiety spiking, because he was quick to assure you. WE ARE NOT THAT WEAK, DO NOT FEAR. WE ARE NOT MELTING, NOR ARE WE LOSING OURSELVES. WE ARE TRULY THE GREATER SUM OF OUR PARTS.

You tried to sign, but your hands wouldn't move quite right. It was almost as if you were somehow standing a little to the left of your actual body - moving your limbs didn't feel quite right, and when you did eventually get your body to cooperate, it was as if you were moving through water.

WE ARE STILL VERY LOW ON ENERGY, CHILD. WE WILL NEED TO REST, AND AFTERWARDS, IT WILL BECOME EASIER.

There was a pause, and then the voice sounded a little more upbeat. FRISK! FORGIVE ME, I HAVE FORGOTTEN TO PROPERLY INTRODUCE MYSELF.

MY NAME IS WING DINGS GASTER, OR SIMPLY GASTER, IF YOU'D LIKE. I AM DELIGHTED WE CAN FINALLY TALK FACE TO FACE...OR SOUL TO SOUL, AS IT WERE.

 

* * *

 

 

The reports were coming in.

Several monsters had seen a grey hooded figure, getting progressively less mangled, and showing up in places that you loved. Or to people you knew. MK was still trying to recover from a scare he'd gotten in his backyard.

There were other reports, too, and they were more and more numerous. The figure had shown up at Grillby's, at universities, and even at the lab Alphys worked at. It didn't seem interested in the people, when it showed up in public places. It merely observed, and vanished when approached.

They hadn't caught wind of you in ages. You were hiding out somewhere. The former guard couldn't find your scent anywhere, and your magic was nowhere to be found. You'd effectively vanished into thin air.

Things weren't going all that great. Sans had temporarily moved into Undyne's place - it's not that he and Toriel were splitting up, but she'd shut herself off completely. It'd gotten really uncomfortable and awkward, and though he made it a point to try and talk to her most every day, he decided that maybe she needed a little space. They'd never had a real fight, so they both felt out of sorts and tense on top of everything else.

Asgore had made no headway whatsoever on the hate groups, but he didn't think they were responsible. Honestly, that whole incident was starting to seem really odd, but they had bigger fish to fry at the moment.

Alphys wasn't on leave from the lab, but she did work from home more often than not. The figure showing up at work had spooked her pretty bad, and most of what she researched could be done from her small but functional home lab.

Undyne was out every single day looking for you, as was Papyrus. Muffet was taking a temporary sabbatical, but before she left to sunnier pastures for a spell, she discreetly let them know to contact her should anything serious pop up. That spider always did know more than she let on. In the meantime, her fellow spiders helped run the store in her stead, and Papyrus was given vacation time.

Papyrus was ever cheerful, but he couldn't take a vacation if his life depended on it. Not right now, anyway. He was the Great Papyrus, and as the Greatest, he was going to find you come hell or high water. He had to.

Sans had advised Grillby that he might want to take a short vacation too, but the flame monster scoffed at the idea. He did eventually agree to cut his shifts down to only a couple a week, and to check in with Sans, but otherwise he was stubborn. Sans knew better than to push it any farther, so he let it be.

Sans didn't lose hope. He couldn't. He had the bare minimum of HP you could have, he didn't really have any hope to lose.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear there's a light at the end of the tunnel, guys. Somewhere.


	35. Chapter 35

The voice at the other end of the phone was scratchy, unused. Tired. "We're calling a press conference."

Sans nearly spat out his drink, and Grillby gave him a raised eyebrow as he sputtered. "i - what? tori? you're kiddin' me here, right?"

There was a deep sigh. "Look, Sans. We've tried our best, we have. But we still have not found Frisk. There's still been no trace, there's been only the sightings of that ghastly ..." Toriel's voice hitched. "People are starting to ask questions, Sans. Maybe we won't have to do this on our own anymore."

"have you uh, have you told the others yet?" Sans asked.

"No. Asgore is currently getting in touch with the press to work out a time. I'm going to make sure the others know before then."

"what do we even say? 'hey folks, sorry to bother ya, but the savior of monsterkind is gone? maybe turned into someting weird, we don't know? oh yeah, also the grey whatever it is may be them, or might be something or someone else?" Sans whispered furiously into the receiver. He didn't mean to be so aggressive about it, but this was throwing him for one hell of a loop. "what about those DT assholes?"

"Do you know that MK's mother called this morning, saying MK was having nightmares?" Toriel asked cooly. "Or that the children at school are asking why they can't visit? The university let Alphys know she couldn't come back, did you know that? Too much of a security risk, they said."

There was a sigh at the other end. "Sans, look. We will all convene beforehand to work out what to say. We will be careful, and we'll plan this all out before we set foot in front of a camera. I'd appreciate it if you'd join." She trailed off. "You don't have to attend the conference if you don't want to, Sans. It'd mean a lot to me if you did."

The line went dead.  
  


* * *

 

 

Gaster arrived in a dimly lit room, covered in old notes and reeking of smoke. This was an old respite, a workshop hidden away among the hallways of the Core. Alphys took after him in that respect, he mused.

No matter. His old experiments were long gone - some had escaped, others were mere piles of dust on the floor. Someone had rifled through here - most likely Sans. He'd visited work with his father enough, he'd probably seen the place at least once. It was so long ago now that Gaster's memory was honestly a little fuzzy.

He frowned. Gaster prided himself on being meticulous, on being organized, and on being firmly confident in his own mental soundness. He should remember that clearly. With a flourish, he made a note for later and put it aside for now.

Frisk was stirring.

The child was proving...difficult. Not intentionally, no - for all intents and purposes, Gaster was now the best friend they'd never had. No, their stubborn soul would not sync with his completely. He was the stronger one, with more LV and HP, but he couldn't quite control when the child's weaker soul drifted in and out of awareness, and drawing upon the child's magic was slow and laborious. All his research pointed to Gaster being able to play Frisk and their magic like a well-tuned violin.

That was another thing to file away for later, Gaster supposed. Things were going well enough, unexpected side trips aside, so the little bumps in the road could be smoothed over later. Besides, your little escapades had numbered less and less lately.

He really didn't want to destroy the child, oh gods no. He could never be so cruel, no matter what his old employees used to whisper behind his back. Frisk would be something of an...observer. A narrator, if you will, of the body they shared, who could comment and observe but not have to worry about the messy business of controlling the body. Gaster would do most of the moving and talking, of course, but it's not as if the child would be wiped away completely. Eventually, once they'd come around a little more to the idea of acting alongside him, he'd let them take control every once in a while.

With strict guidance, of course. He was always watchful of his pupils.

What lie would he feed the child this time? Maybe tell them they were back in Snowdin...though, that might make them struggle more. That wouldn't fly, Gaster decided.

Maybe the lab that Alphys had let fall into disrepair? No, the child had been there, they'd notice something. Gaster wasn't sure that their old memories wouldn't...leak through, as it were, so he decided against it. Better safe than sorry, as the help used to say when seeing to his sons.

Perhaps I'll simply take a page out of the king's book, Gaster mused, and call it Home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gaster, buddy, chum, pal, amigo, maybe tone down the over-confidence, it'll do you no good. 
> 
> Thanks again for all the comments/kudos/bookmarks/subscriptions/everything, guys! There might be a brief delay between this chapter and the next, fyi, due to a family emergency. The next one will be out before mid-month, though!


	36. Chapter 36

There was a music box playing, somewhere. Someone was softly talking to you, or rather, at you. It was a nice voice - a little high pitched, but kind. It kept telling you to stay determined, to keep up the fight. You had no idea what the hell it was talking about, but you appreciated the sentiment anyway.

The air was thick with the smell of flowers, but it didn't bother you. It felt almost...familiar?

You woke up to find Gaster shuffling through a pile of old, dust-covered reports. You could make out some words in hands - things like "urn" and "restraints" and "barrier", but the rest was either too complex or too smudged for you to understand.

AH, FRISK. GOOD MORNING. I WASN'T EXPECTING YOU TO BE UP, AS OF YET. Gaster swiftly tucked the reports away into a nearby desk. HOW ARE YOU FEELING?

 _...okay._ You answered, truthfully. _Still kinda fuzzy. Will that clear up soon?_

YES, WITH MORE REST AND REJUVENATION.

 _...what were you reading?_ You asked, curious. You mentioned what you had been able to read, however little it may have been.

...YOU CAN READ THAT? HOW VERY INTERESTING. A pause. SIMPLY OLD REPORTS DETAILING OLD EXPERIMENTS. NOTHING MORE.

 _Oh._ You tried to look around but Gaster kept your - both of your heads - the head in place. The lines were getting awfully blurry.  
The air was thick with the smell of ozone. It struck a chord with you, and made you...uncomfortable? Hopeful? Scared? There was a flurry of emotions, all from a single smell. Gaster didn't seem to notice.

WE ARE IN...AN OLD HAUNT, OF MINE. WE SHOULD BE SAFE FOR THE MEANTIME.

 _Were you a scientist?_ You asked.

OF A SORT. Gaster answered, not unkindly. NOT ENTIRELY LIKE THE SCIENTISTS HUMANS HAVE. MORE...GOAL DRIVEN. There was a pause, as if Gaster was considering something. ARE YOU INTERESTED IN THE SCIENCES?

You had never had all that much schooling, truth be told, and you said so. _I do think that kinda stuff is interesting, though,_ you added.

REALLY? SPLENDID. I HAVE MUCH TO TEACH YOU, THEN.

 

* * *

 

  
TWO OF̡ ͡TḨE̸ SOU͟ĻS ͜H͠A̴VE "S̕HAT͡ŢE̛RE̵D҉" ̶SO͘ ̢FAR͠. T̵HE ́K͢IN͟G IS͏ ͜I͟NCR͟ED͘IB͞L̡Y ͡A̷N͠GRÝ,͠ ̕A҉N͜D̢ RIG͢HT̕FU͠LĻY̵ ͢SO.̷ ͘T̴H̨O͢UGH͡,͡ ̷Ì ̶W͠OND͟ER, D̴O̵ÉS HE̶ REA͘LI͠ZE ̡W͏H̀A͡T WE SCIE̴NTI҉ST̶S͢ K̛NO͏W ̨AB͞OƯT H̨I͝S͟ ͘O̢WN S̨IN̷S͟?̡ H͘OW̢ ͟H͢E͜ ̨C͢O̴ŲL̛D҉ ̡TA͜K̶Ę ONE ̕S҉OU͟L̡, A̕ND͢ ̢L̵E̴AV̕È?͘ DOES ̡HE͏ REAL͠IŹE ͢W͘H̶AT̕ ́W͢E CO̷UĹD DO͠ ͡WIT́H͠ ͘ŢHA͡T INF͞O҉RḾATIO̶N?͟  
ƠH҉,̧ WELL͝.̕ ̸H͝IS̢ COW̴ARDLY͟ W̡AY͢Ş ̀A͡LLOW FOR U͢NBŖI̕D̸LE̛D҉ R҉ES͘EARCH,͠ ̀S̴O I̵ WILL͠ I͠G̕NOR͞E̶ T̡H̶E̕M. ҉F͜ǪR ŃO̡W.  
  
CI͞ŚTE̡R̛N̶ ͏HAS͘ L͠ON͢G SINC͝E͟ C̡RUMB́L͜ED̶ TO ͘D͝USŢ, H̷AV͘ING ͘AC͜HI̡ȨVED͜ ̵N̛OT̛HING̕.̶ PÌT̴Y̕. AT̴ L̴E͢A̶S͟T̸ ̧S҉ƠME INTEŔE̢ST͟IŃG̸ ̨RE̵SŲL̨T͏S ̸WE̸RE P̡R͝O͞DUCED,͡ U̡SE̸L̛ES͞S T̕H͡O̴U͞G̡H THE͏Y͏ M̶AY̧ ͢B͢E.  
  
͘Į ̶WONDER.̧ ̷W͘I͢LL ͏TH̕E̵S͘E ̵ŞO̕U͠L̀S͢ ҉FA͡RE B͟ET͏TER͢? H͟UMAN ̡ŞO̴ULS A̷R͝E̸ C̵UR͜IOUS ̷THIN͠GS.̛

 

 

* * *

 

  
The press conference didn't go well.

It didn't get that far, either. Not much of the human press were all that interested an a proclamation from monsters - old prejudiced habits can run deep, and monster hate groups had friends in high places. The monster outlets were willing to listen, but nobody wanted to really gather out in the open for an event like that. So many monsters, in one open space?

Things had gotten better, sure, but they weren't that far yet.

So, instead of a press conference, Sans found himself tagging along with Toriel, Asgore, and Undyne as they visited the monster-run news outlets, and one or two monster-friendly human outlets. Sans and Undyne were there for both moral and physical support, and they were needed quite often. Monsters reacted...okay. One or two simply vanished, presumably dust after losing their HP.

That in particular caused it's own grief-filled headache.

A few others were incredibly angry that it had been kept secret for so long, and lashed out. Still others calmly spoke with them, and offered soothing words. The humans were understanding, though incredibly curious. It was made clear that only the barest of information be spread, to help stave off unwanted attention from unsavory parties. Whether anyone would actually keep their promise was doubtful, but at least it was there.

Everyone, though, was incredibly worried about you, and about that shambling...thing that might be you. At least the word was out, your family assured themselves.

Speaking of shambling, the thing hadn't been spotted in a few days. One would think that would be a good thing, but with the theories your family had about it, it really wasn't. The air was tense, and nobody really talked to each other - everyone was waiting for it to show up again, or for the other shoe to drop, or something.

Meanwhile, Sans got a bag ready. He had an inkling of where to look. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stay determined!


	37. Chapter 37

Papyrus was pooped.

He and Undyne had just finished up a marathon streak of looking for you, or any sign of you, and it turned up diddly squat. You didn't even feel like you were in the same county, let alone the same city. At least then, there'd be hints of your magic around, but there was nothing to be found.

Ever since the news broke, monsters and some humans who were in the know volunteered to help out. There was Corriander, a rather intimidating looking mouse monster, who spoke in extremely gentle tones and generally took to the rougher areas of town to scout out. A group of monster rights activists from the local university were keeping an eye out, despite the university itself issuing a stern warning that they should cease and desist. A human called Miryla, who was pretty talented with a sword, scoped out the less monster friendly areas of town. She was a friend of Mettatons, so she was able to get into the more exclusive (and secret) places...but there wasn't any sign of you among the humans, either.

God, he was tired. So tired. He wasn't going to fade to dust or anything, but he needed a break. He tried to convince Undyne to take one with him, but she refused. Instead, she dropped him off at Toriel's home and muttered something about checking out the industrial area. She was gone with a squeal of tires and probably too much smoke before Papyrus could protest.

Things weren't any better inside the house.

Toriel was yelling at Sans, in a louder voice than Papyrus had ever heard from her. Asgore was just inside the door and grasped Papyrus' shoulder. "Best not to disturb those two right now, I think," he whispered.

"WHAT HAPPENED?" Papyrus asked, worried.

"Well...Tori found your brother packing a bag. He was going to go off alone to search for Frisk." Asgore heaved a sigh. "You know your brother."

"STUBBORN. OBSTINATE. A REAL JACKASS SOMETIMES." Papyrus looked just as surprised as Asgore at the curse, and looked over sheepishly. "NYEH...SORRY. IT'S BEEN A RATHER LONG DAY OF SEARCHING."

"...how about we go get some tea, Papyrus. You look like you could use some."  
  


* * *

  
  
("You think you can just go on without us? What, like you're some lone hero?"

"tori, look, I didn't want -"

"Don't "Tori" me, Sans!")

"...your brother has done his fair share of accusing too, to be fair." Asgore offered, filling up the kettle as Papyrus winced from the shouting. "Toriel hid herself away for a good while."

("fine. Toriel. i didn't mean to upset you or anyone else. if something happened - "

"Do you honestly think it wouldn't matter to us if something happened to _you_ it wouldn't matter to us? To your brother?"

The air crackled a bit with magic, a mixture of cool blue and fiery orange.

"i was the one who drove them away. i should've done better, i should've - "

Toriels voice was a little softer. "We all should have done a little better, Sans, but you know as well as I do that Frisk wasn't fully themselves yet. We don't truly know why they left like they did. You and I both know that wasn't really like them.")

Asgore coughed, grabbing Papyrus' attention. "It's, ah, done." He set the steaming mugs on the table and the two sipped in silence as the arguement raged on, albiet a little softer this time. Soon enough the arguement faded to whispers they couldn't overhear, and then to quietness.

Eventually, Sans came shuffling into the dining room, looking exhausted. Toriel came too, her fur ruffled and dark bags evident under her eyes. "Inform the....others." Toriel said tiredly, her regal tone all but gone. "We're all leaving to the Underground."

"AGAIN? BUT WHY WOULD - " Papyrus started, but Sans held a hand up.

"bro, i think i might have an idea of where they ran off to, I'll explain once the others get here. call it a hunch, but..." A ghost of a smile flitted across Sans' face. "it might help us get to the _core_ of the matter."  


* * *

 

W̧H̕AT AR̢E͠ ̶T͜HE̶ QUA̕L̷IT̡I͞E͡S O̶F ̶THE H͢U̶MA̡N̶ ͝S̵O̵U͞L?  
  
̵W̡E ̡KN̢O҉W͟, OF̵ C͝OƯR͡SE, THAT̸ ́THER͘E̵ A̷R̵E SU͞C͘H Q̷UA͝LIT́I͏ES҉ ̸AS͟ ͞KINDN͝ES͡S, ́P͠ER̡SE̸VERAN̛CE,҉ ̸AN͡D INT̀EGR̶ÍTY͞.͡ HOW̵E҉V͏E̶R,̶ ̢T͘H̨ȨS̷E SO͢ƯLŞ.̵.̨.T͏H́ÈY̴ V͘ARY ̴ON̵ ̕H̴OW LON͟G T̕HEY ͝C͏AN LA͘ST.  
  
ŢO͡D́AỲ W̨E͢ ͜R̡ECĘI͞V͝ED ̡A BR̀A̕VE̡ SÓU͘L̨,͝ ̀CÓUR̀T̴E̶S̸Y ̧OF A̕ ͘HUM͞BLED KI̴N̸G͜.͡ ͟UNL͟I̴ĶE THE͢ ͘KI̶N͝D́ SO͝U̶L ͞THA͏Ţ FE͡LL AP̀A҉RT ALMOST̀ ͢ÌM͠M̧E̶D̀I͘AT͜ÉL̡Y͟ ͝DU̧R͜IŃG͏ ͟T̵ES̡T̕IN͏G,̨ ͝T͡HE ̷B҉ŖAVE ̸ŚOU̡L ͞HA̡S ́HE͟LD ͠UP ̴SO͜ ҉FAR͝. T̡H̡ERE̛ ARE̴ SO̸M͡E͟ ̨CR̛ACK̷S͞ ̵T͢O̴ B́E̡ ͢S̨U̵RE̕, B͜U̵T TH҉OS̸E ARE͢ ͘NOŔMAL͞.  
̀  
TḨIS ÌS ̵PR̢O̢MI͟SÌNG,̶ S͝O͜ F͏A҉R͠,́ ̷B͡UT I WIL͜L N̴OT̡ ĹET M̴Ý ͜H̵OP̀E̢ GET ̷T͟H́E̸ BE̴S̨T O̕F ̨M҉E҉ JÚS̷T̵ ͜YET̵. T͏OM͢OR͠R͝OW̴ W̷E W̸IL͝L ͝S͏EE ̷H̸OW҉ IT͏ HÁNDL̡ES ̡E̴XT̕RAC͘TĮO̧N͜.͝

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Miryla belongs to XxSansxX! It took me a good long while to figure out how I wanted to set this next bit up, but I think I did okay.


	38. Chapter 38

"You fucked up, trashbag."

Your family was going to head back to the Underground as soon as dawn hit. Sans had explained that he thought that, somehow, the old scientist was involved. It was the only explanation he could think of, but when the others asked him how he could do it, he came up short.

So now, he was restlessly tossing and turning, getting the barest amount of sleep while worrying over just what had happened to you. Everything was shrouded in mystery, worse than it was when everyone was trapped.

"Listen, trashbag, I don't have much time. Frisk is gonna lose themselves soon. You need to go. _Now_."

Sans woke with a start, and found Toriel at the door, looking worried. They'd taken to sleeping in seperate rooms - nightmares weren't too kind to either of them, or anyone sleeping next to them. "Sans," she whispered, making her way in. "You were yelling. Are you okay?"

"n-no," He choked out. "...stay here?"

 

* * *

 

 

"Well howdy, buddy! It's been an awful long time since we talked."

Papyrus found himself back Underground, in the grove right outside Snowdin. Flowey was there, cheerfully bobbing from side to side. The small flower gave him a little wave, and patted the ground next to him. "Sit down, friend! We have a lot of things to talk about."

Once settled, Flowey turned to him. "You trust your best friend, right?"

"WELL OF COURSE! THE GREAT PAPYRUS ONLY HAS THE MOST TRUSTWORTHY OF FRIENDS. ALTHOUGH..." Papyrus paused. "YOU WERE NOT NICE WHEN WE LAST 'HUNG OUT.'"

"Golly, I'm sorry about that." Flowey did look sorry, with his petals drooping and eyes downcast.

"NOT TO WORRY FRIEND! I BELIEVE YOU CAN DO BETTER!" Papyrus, ever cheerful, gave the flower a somewhat forceful pat on the head. A brief grimace flashed across Flowey's face, but it was gone before the boisterous skeleton noticed.

"That's why I'm here! I know where the br - Frisk is." Flowey said, the cheerfulness a little forced this time. "You've gotta go back, Papyrus."

"Back where?" Papyrus asked, confused. The scenery started to warp around them and the flower cursed. The dream was about to end.

"Back where you were _made_ , idiot!"

Papyrus woke with a start, his soul racing with energy. His first thought was to hide, his second was to wake the entire house, and his third was to see if he could fall back asleep and pretend this never happened. It was a dream, right? Just a dream.

It stuck with him, though. Made? What on earth?

It was an hour or so before dawn, and he wasn't getting back to sleep any time soon. Resigned, he began packing to leave, and resolved to speak with his brother about it later. 


End file.
